


The Golden Month

by JustBukharin



Category: Las Lindas (Webcomic)
Genre: Ambar breaks the Fourth Wall, Ambar is in the Notes, Canon Compliant, Developing Friendships, Eventual Smut, F/M, Family Bonding, Family Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Las Lindas Spinoff, Surrogate Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-08
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:15:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 30
Words: 182,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22176142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustBukharin/pseuds/JustBukharin
Summary: "If I have to be honest, I certainly didn't expect this to happen after a night spent at the pub..." A month to prove a point, to win a bet and... to learn about this new world. Matt seems to have it difficult, hopefully things will actually prove to be easier... right?
Relationships: Matt Newcastle & Diana Linda (Las Lindas), Minor Matt Newcastle (OC)/Ria "Taffy" Rudiger (Las Lindas)
Kudos: 3





	1. World, here I… come?

**Chapter** **1: World, here I… come?**

There are times I truly wish I could remember about common sense and self-control. Yesterday proved once more how I can’t handle even a little glass of alcohol.

I couldn’t even remember what kind of beverage I was offered, nor I could explain why I blacked out so quickly. I groaned, my body feeling terribly sore, tired and… my eyes slowly opened to an unfamiliar ceiling.

A blink, then two.

I was on the couch of some strangers’ house. I flinched as the sensitivity of my entire body kicked quickly up, the waking up process speeding up the moment I realized that there was a strong possibility that I have been kidnapped.

My hands unconsciously drifted near my thighs, trying to spot any hurting spot, _anything_ that could hint at any of the worst scenarios.

I felt at ease moments later after having confirmed the only aching being the overall post-sleep soreness.

This… was a strange situation. I felt my muscles whine a little as I shifted carefully to sit on the couch, gaining a better sight of the whole room.

It looked like a normal living room, maybe a little bit cramped compared to the one I had back home. Nothing special, except for the various things placed on the small table in front of the couch.

The walls were painted in a soft yellow, not bright enough to blind my poor eyes but also not dark enough to give a sense of decay about the whole room.

I had one of the small pieces of paper, something like business cards, sitting atop everything else on my hand, my eyes reading quickly the words there and… I frowned.

‘ **Las Lindas** ’

I don’t think I’ve ever heard of something going with that name. There was just some other info, like phone number and email, but there wasn’t anything else that could have helped me understand what was going on.

I was slightly annoyed at being left with little close to nothing from that brief search and I was already considering wandering as nobody seemed to be around to-

**Clang**

I flinched the moment I saw the plate being put on the table, the suddenness of the action catching me off-guard. “Whoops! Sorry pal, it’s just that the eggs were burning there and-”

“I-It’s alright.” I nodded my stare still fixed on the delicious scrambled eggs with bacon steaming just fine under my needy and hungry eyes. “I just wasn’t expecting to be offered breakfast after-!!”

I looked up, ready to connect the friendly tone of the dude that offered me such a delicious treat to his face and… I ended up freezing up at what I was looking at.

Brown orbs, a lighter shade than mine but still having quite the warmth tone on them.

From the eyes, I turned to the _rest_ of his body. I wasn’t looking to a full-fledged human being, but to someone that was an… anthropomorphic animal.

The animal in question was a dog, at first sight, a Border Collie.

He had shoulder-length white-hair and he was wearing a sleeveless pink shirt and long gym-pants. I blinked again, realizing that I was staring far too long now.

“I-I’m sorry-”

“That’s fine, man.” My half-ass apology was rebuffed politely. “I suppose you are still dizzy because of how you have fallen asleep.”

It was nice that I didn’t have to explain that, while I appeared just shook and nothing else about learning of his figure, inside I was going full-panic at the humanoid nodding my way and gesturing me to dig at the breakfast.

_If before I still had some doubts about it, now I can say for sure that I am far from home._

Knowing that it was for the best to avoid asking about the ‘how’ and the ‘what the heck’, I started to tentatively try the food and… it wasn’t half-bad.

While the scrambled eggs had some visible black spot, burned edges, yet I couldn’t help but smile once more at trying it with the bacon. The strip of meat was perfectly cooked in my opinion.

I nodded unconsciously and the young ‘man’ chuckled. “Good. Now if you excuse me, I still have to finish serving the rest of the breakfast and- are you still feeling dizzy?”

Humming, I shook my head. I was still taking in the whole ‘anthro guy’ situation. I wasn’t particularly scared, he seemed to be a good person but I just wanted to know what was going on here.

“I know I shouldn’t be asking this since you have just woken up and you are still recovering from what has happened but...” He pointed at the plate with an uneasy look. “Could you please bring the plate back to the kitchen or you could leave it and-”

“I can do that,” I replied quickly, almost facepalming at how quickly I did. “I mean, I know you are the host and all, but I am not made of paper.”

“Understood and- Actually, I don’t think I introduced myself.” He leaned down, a big smile on his face as he stretched his open palm towards me, waiting for the hand-shake and…

“My name is Randal Hawthorne.” He presented himself, nodding once more and causing me to sigh.

I nodded with a small smiled and went to grasp his waiting hand.

“M-Matt, Matt Newcastle.” I replied with a calm but determined voice.

The texture reminded me of soft fur _because it was soft fur_ , but there was also something that felt… different from petting a cat or a dog. It felt oddly satisfying.

The handshake ended moments later, Randal departed shortly after but not before giving me quickly some directions for the kitchen.

I paused just a moment, letting him leave my sight before returning my attention to the last thoughts before he arrived.

Glancing back at the ceiling, my mind started to compile a limited analysis of my current predicament and… I was completely stomped by several elements.

While Randal was genuinely a good person, I still felt like I needed to know what he ‘was’. I didn’t mean it as an offense, but seriously, I don’t think that animal-like people just appeared from nowhere in a single day-

Actually, how long have I been sleeping?

My mind was quickly saying ‘a day’ but I had to be sure and thus my hand went to my pants’ left pocket. I recognized the familiar weight of my phone moments after waking up, thus I knew that I wasn’t robbed whatsoever.

I turned the device on- when did I turn it off? I never had it to shut down without any formal reason and as the display showed pure, blinding white, a strange notification popped up.

**Input Password:**

...I don’t have a password on my phone. This was my phone, I was fairly sure of it as the maker and the damaged sections were still there, and-

Maybe someone pranked me. There was no doubt in hell that this wasn’t something I caused but I still started to try and get some passwords in the configuration.

Birthday? Nope.

The day I finished High School? Nyet.

Driving License? Nada.

Classic ‘123’? Niente!

I huffed in annoyance at this new obstacle, knowing that someone somehow got hold of my phone while I was unconscious and placed a password in it. That meant I was further deprived of the chance of getting some concrete data, like my detailed whereabouts and what time it was.

Closing my eyes for a moment, I retained some minor composure as I reminded myself I had things to do. Picking up the plate in both hands, I slowly got up from the couch, back hurting and all, but I managed to get some steps in the right direction.

The kitchen was actually spacious, rather surprising as usually the living room was supposed to be three times the kitchen. This was the case in all the houses I’ve visited.

I placed the plate down in the sink and turned around, eyes glancing all over the place and… I saw some frames with pictures.

Many had Randal smiling in them, and some even when he was younger and looking so adorable.

I was tempted to _D’aww_ at these last ones in particular but I decided against it for both for masculinity’s and silence’s sake.

In the picture there were also three more characters, one actually ‘disappearing’ after a few of those, while two distinct ones persisting together with Randal.

Both bovines with brown-fur complex, the oldest of the two a yellower/lighter-shade fur and with horns more developed compared to the youngest. The two females were mother and daughter.

Does that make Randal… adopted or something?

Just as I continued to fall deeper into these minor revelations, I felt someone’s finger poking at my shoulder. “I see that you got there without issue and- you noticed the photos?”

Oh? An opportunity to tease a little? Who was I to deny myself this _duty_!

“I did,” I replied, my lips twitching smugly. “You were adorable as a child, _Randy_.”

I was trying to tease, I was _trying to tease the easy-going_ dog-boy and yet he gave the most confusing, embarrassing and back-firing reaction I could have ever imagined.

He smiled, eyes closed and a light blush somehow visible through the fur on his face. “T-Thank you. Mom used to tease me about it but I guess I-I really was… adorable.”

...This just leaves me embittered and oddly confused.

Dumb Human 0 – 1 Smart Doggo

_Dangit…_

“S-So, do you have something to do or-”

He nodded wide-eyed, jumping a little at the sudden change of topic. “Yes right, I-I have to leave this plate on the sink and...” He stopped, his smile renewed as he glanced my way. “Mom wants to meet you.”

I blinked. “Your mom? You mean… she is at home right now?”

I kind of expected her to not be there as I heard nobody walking around except Randal… but he did just bring a second plate to another section of the house and returned with it completely ‘cleaned up’.

Another nod. “She is resting a little right now.” He hesitated just a moment, his smile faltering briefly. I frowned as he continued. “She felt a little tired, I bet she will be fully active tomorrow.”

Something was missing in his words, something about his tone was… off. It was a subtle change, but one that made so many differences in his mannerism.

_Oddly, it felt familiar._

“Well, if your mom wants to meet me, I don’t think it would be right if we lose time.” I patted his shoulder while moving toward the doorstep. “Let’s not make her wait.” I smiled as I waited for him to react.

He looked surprised but nodded and led me deeper into the house and… we reached a rather dark part of the building. There were few lights, but their intensity was lesser than the others of the corridors.

Randal stopped, a hand lifting to knock at the door in front of him. Two soft knocks and we both waited for a response.

“ _Come in._ ” It was muffled, but I felt something was wrong with her voice.

The door was opened and we entered a barely-illuminated bedroom. It had a large queen-sized bed, several decorated pieces of furniture, a full mirror and… the woman that I have seen in the pictures.

_She was different, a duller version of the lively mother I’ve learned of from the photos._

Her light-brown hair were now sporting some graying locks in a display of old age; There some small wrinkles present in her still youthful-looking face and she seemed fairly… drained with her current expression.

She was wearing what looked to be a simple set of dull pink-themed Pjs, coming a little tight because of how much time had passed since she had last wore this set, giving me some hints that this pieces of clothes hadn’t been used for a long time… until now at least.

Then I noticed her eyes and I felt even sadder at what I was looking at.

It was just this little detail that got me quite perplexed over this encounter.

Despite the attempt made by her kind smile and lovely expression to try and convey the genuine good-will of this tired woman, there was a glint in her green orbs that left me incredibly confused and melancholic.

_I could see defeat in her eyes. Defeat about work, defeat about family and… defeat about life itself._

It started to leave a wrong impression of distress in my core, my mind bringing back some of the _recent events_ I wished to ignore right now and yet I was forced to deal with this.

I took a big and heavy breath before returning to my pressing thoughts.

First I deal with the immediate situation, then I would give some more focus on my own life’s problems.

“Good morning.”

Her voice was soft, but lacking the warmth that should be there to combine with her gentle look.

“Good morning, ma’am,” I replied kindly and politely, her smile widened a fraction at my quiet tone before giving a simple sigh.

“It’s been so long since I have last seen a human in this part of Neo-Earth,” The woman commented quietly. “And I doubt you are here without a particular reason.”

She narrowed her eyes on me and I surprisingly felt some effect from that weak but stern glance trying to push me to talk.

There was a detail in this curious look _that reminded me of something I’ve experienced before_ , the intensity was so strong that I had to look away in shame at how intense it was.

It was an odd reaction coming from me but… I couldn’t do much about it as my body did it without notice, it was all based from an instinct that was currently eluding my capacity to move against it.

I knew for sure _why_ she was feeling threatened by my presence here as I was a possible danger in her house with her son around.

I was an intruder to her and… there wasn’t much I could do to deter her from this proper line of thought.

Randal looked particularly surprised at his mother, then back at me and one last time to the woman.

The woman was waiting for a response from me and… I was feeling very nervous about what I was supposed to say. She looked ready to jump me at any wrong steps I could take and I felt paling the more I waited.

Then I managed to spoke, my throat aching in the dryness caused by the nerve-wracking moment.

“I-I don’t know,” I started to explain, a brief pause as her eyes narrowed even more. “T-The last thing I remember was falling asleep at-”

“At the bar down the path-” She tried to interject but at that point, I snapped back.

“The one near home!” I interrupted with some annoyance blasting in my words, the outburst making them both look in surprise and I knew I was tip-toeing a dangerous edge if I continued to let my emotions rule over _that_ matter. “I-I’m not from around her a-and I certainly didn’t plan to come here.”

There was silence, part of me starting to giving up at the chance of avoiding an escalation and yet-

“I believe you.”

… “W-What?” I asked, eyes blinking at the weird tone the woman adopted.

The other humanoid looked shocked too but didn’t voice it.

“You sound like you mean it,” She explained calmly, her smile once more adorning her face. “So I will believe you for now.”

Then she turned to look at her son and nodded.

“Son, you should go and finish your chores. I think you have yet to wash the dishes and…” She turned her eyes on me. “I will spare some words with our guest before having him return to you.”

He blinked. “B-But mom-”

“He will be fine, Randal.” Her smile turned sickly sweet. “I will make sure he understands a ‘thing or two’, nothing more.”

Randal looked confused and hesitant to go, I noticed his short tail had stopped to waggle for a long time now.

He spared me just a long, hesitant look as if asking me to not do anything wrong and… I found myself nodding back at him.

He smiled a little and returned the gesture before turning around and leaving through the door, closing it behind himself as he left us two alone.

I gulped nervously as her green orbs fixed on my face.

“I almost forgot to tell,” She started with an amicable tone. “I’m Diana Linda, the owner of Las Lindas.”

A blink passed and I nodded. “N-Nice to meet you, Mrs. Linda, my name is Matt Newcastle.”

Diana hummed, her head tilting on one side and then she nodded.

“You are lying.” She remarked without hesitation.

I froze at the words, my eyes slightly widening at the smile still growing.

“W-What?” I tried to wriggle myself out of that situation by faking confusion. “T-That is my name-”

“Wrong, try again.”

I paused just a moment, my eyes narrowing on her smug smile as I tried to make sense of what was going on with her. There was no way in hell that she knew I was lying about my name-

“It’s your accent,” She dropped the hint out with an amused tone. “I’ve traveled around the world and I do know how the Italian accent works. The ‘s’ tend to be emphasized as a ‘z’ in the pronunciation and while you seem to have almost won over this flaw, you still have your moments.”

I- She knew about where I was from by my accent and- _Dangit!_

“And!” Diana grinned a little as she revealed a very familiar object that _should have been in one of my pants’ pockets._ “I found your wallet.”

“Why do you even have it?” I asked quickly, making her sigh tiredly at my confusion.

“I was the one that found you while taking a walk around. You were dangling off one of the apple trees of our orchard and I had to check if you were someone trustworthy or not.” She explained in detail. “You have a lot to explain, _Mattia Castelnuovo,_ like how did you exactly end up in Gossamer?”

 _Gossa-what?_ What was she talking about- was that a country, a nation or a region-

“I… don’t know?”

Her lips twitched in annoyance and she let out an annoyed huff as she eased on the bed. “You are possibly one of the most enigmatic individuals I’ve ever dealt in the last few months.”

“Oh,” I said intelligently, eyes blinking with some confusion.

Diana sighed. “And I don’t even know what to do about you.”

There was some tension, I felt some shivers go down my spine as I waited silently for something to happen-

“What do you think I should do?” She asked, curiosity swelling in her words. “Do you have any suggestions?”

...She is joking. She _has_ to be joking to be asking me ‘what’ she should do to meand…

“You are not kidding, aren’t you?”

The woman shook her head softly, she didn’t give anything verbally, and I sighed in annoyance at the situation I was presented with.

What was I supposed to say? Let myself go free without any prices-

But it wouldn’t then be right!

I know that I was dealing with an ‘out-of-jail card’ scenario but I wasn’t seriously going to leave this place without… some questions answered.

I also felt like I did have some debt to pay to both Diana and Randal as they did provide me some food and shelter, a place to rest too.

I blinked again as my mind provided with an alternative.

Something that could help, something that could give me some time and space to evaluate my possibilities.

My mouth opened.

“What if… I worked for you?” I offered slowly, calmly my eyes gauging anything in her face that could offer me any indication over the wording of the idea. “You have a farm, so I could work for you to repay your kindness and-”

“You genuinely think I helped you expecting to be repaid somehow?” Diana’s rhetorical question _and_ irked tone were enough to make me flinch instantly as she summarized ‘my idea’. “I hope you understand that what you just said sound more like you are trying to offend me.”

I shook my head. “I meant that I can work for you in exchange for food and shelter. The debt thing is… more of a personal objective,” I reiterated in a better light, yet her eyes narrowed suspiciously and I knew she was hardly accepting my perspective.

“So I should hire you, have you live in my house and… and to what end exactly? What are you trying to accomplish by doing so?” The woman pressed on, causing me to look away in embarrassment.

I’m not the smartest diplomat and I knew I was missing something… important.

“What if we make a bet?” Diana mused quietly, head reclining to the large pillow behind her. “What if… I give you a long-term objective to complete before the end of a set time-limit.”

I blinked.

“A… long-term objective?” I asked with some curiosity. What was she trying to do here?

“Las Lindas has...” She sighed heavily, there was an annoyed look but… was it directed _towards herself?_

“Fallen in a bad shape. It would need someone with enough determination to work hard enough and have it back to working shape.”

“How ‘bad’ are we talking about?” I continued to ask my fair share of questions and Diana was more than happy to reply to all of them.

“You would be the only worker,” The woman replied quickly and without hesitation. “Randal can help you here and there, but it has to be you doing the real work.”

I was about to give another question when she continued to talk.

“Tomorrow morning you will be going with my son to the local market to buy some new equipment. I don’t think the ones we have left in the barn can be used after so long since they have last seen some light.”

“So…” I hummed quietly. “We are done here?”

She nodded and relaxed on her big pillow. “I give you a month starting from tomorrow.”

I gave her a wide-eyed stare, realizing that the time I was going to be doing this miracle was going to put no little pressure on my back.

“U-Understood.”

Walking towards the door, Diana spoke once more.

“And before you go, please come closer. Just a moment,”

She gestured me to approach and… I complied, walking right by the left side of the bed. It was with this closeness that I ended up noticing her… curves. She was past her prime but her body still was something quite… _heavenly_.

“When you are finished undressing me with your eyes, you can return back to the real world,” She huffed slightly annoyed, causing me to blush heavily at being caught in the act.

“S-Sorry.” The apology was a must, the smile that I received wasn’t something I was expecting.

“It’s fine, I know you are still young...” She nodded to herself, smiling a little. “Younger than Randal, I reckon.”

“Younger? I thought he was younger than me?” I gave her a surprised look and she nodded, gesturing me to tilt closer as her hands slowly moved near my face and…

Was she going for head-patting? Why would she do tha- _**AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHT!** _

“ _Nuaaahh!_ ” The pain was unbearable, her hands closed on my poor cheeks and started to pinch these mercilessly. “ _Pweese, nomowe!_ ”

“Oh, no more?” Her smile twitched with amusement. “Yet you were quite the stubborn brat in thinking I was trying to gain something from helping you out.”

She stopped pinching, relenting the hold just a moment.

“Tell me, what do you think of me?”

 _This is escalating way too quickly_.

“ _You awe_ _P-Pwetty?_ ”

She blinked. “Pretty? Can’t you think of something a little more… proper for myself?”

… “ _Dwop-dwead gowgeous?_ ”

“Fair enough.” She nodded, accepting the compliment but… starting to pinch once more. “And what about kindness?”

“ _W-Wewy kwind?_ ” The pinching intensified even more. “ _I-I me-an, supah-dupah kwind!_ ”

She let go, this time her hands shifting to cup both cheeks in a soft and calm hold. I blinked, my face burning at the torture it had just endured and… I found myself awed at what I was looking at.

Diana’s face was red, her breathing a little labored as her mouth laid open wide as she was recovering from… laughing?

I did remember hearing her give a quick chuckle, but I was fairly sure that this kind of reaction could only be reached when someone gave a full-blown laugh.

“T-That was… hilarious.” She said as if holding back a giggle, then she sighed. “I-I’m sorry but-”

“It’s fine,” I replied somberly, causing her to give a sheepish look in return.

“Then you may go. I think Randal would need some help and...” She hummed for a brief moment. “Can you please see if there is someone interested in my baby boy in town-”

“I will take my leave,” I said coolly, moving out of her hands as she tried and failed to extort some promise of babysitting the young man.

He was older than me and I was supposed to keep an eye on him?

_This place is starting to show some strange crazy._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First chapter of this 31-Chapters long Volume and hopefully I will manage to complete it without any major issues. What is it? An experiment of sort. So… See ya!
> 
> EDIT: Grammar orrections done by a combined effort from Ant0nius (FF) and I.


	2. Friendship and Anger

**Chapter 2** **: Friendship and Anger**

The night was dreamless, just some minor nightmare that wasn’t worthy of much… commentary.

Since I was a complete stranger, my current sleeping arrangements were decided by dinner time by Diana herself and… I was partly confused.

Randal’s room was big enough for a person, but it was easy to see how cramped it was for two people. The first issue was the bed debacle… quick explanation:

Being a polite individual staying over at some kind people’s house, I was keen to immediately decline the _Prime_ ’s offer to have his bed. Being a generous fellow, Randal decided to insist on the matter and pressing me to just accept it for the sake of being well-rested for the following day, a workday too.

The little debate escalated to a strange settlement, not even I was sure how it truly worked.

I got the floor… and my new friend joined in too. The small area fitted well to have the two of us taking some space to sleep, just enough to not push each other all together. Sleep came after two hours of silent, closed-eyed thinking and I was glad that Randal fell asleep much earlier than I did… offering me the chance of giving some heavy contemplation over my odd situation.

Yes, I learned that the anthropomorphic people living in this new region of the world are called Primes. I was unsure over the ‘why’ they were called so, but I was quick to notice some shocking details from that dinner.

There was a small radio tuned in and some news managed to filter out through it.

I knew that the name of the region where I was currently staying was Gossamer, a small section of a whole new continent that has been developed much less than the rest. Some technology reached out, but I think it wasn’t a push strong enough to kick-start industry here.

Agriculture feasted upon this lack of development, driving several of the oldest families that survived out of this part of the economy to expand and improve. If I have to be honest, I felt this was somehow… planned.

Producing natural products was as good as the normal product-making industry.

People loved ‘vintage’ things and, from my understanding, the differences between a Prime and a simple human being were mostly limited to their biology.

They both reasoned the same way and shared the same pluralistic society.

But the biggest news was furnished by… the date of the whole thing.

Before I left that bar late that night, I was quite sure it was still 2019. When I first heard the date listed by the radio speaker… I had to stop a moment to seriously contemplate.

2217.

That’s… 198 years in the… future? But this couldn’t be just a ‘time travel’ predicament. My highest bet was that I somehow ended up meeting with the legendary… Truck-kun.

The possibility that I was Isekai’d to a parallel dimension wasn’t that much of a strange idea, e _specially with the Primes as proof that things aren’t the same as it was before that eventful night._

It was something quite heavy to digest and my mind found itself influenced by this dramatic development.

So much that my twisted imagination deemed it right to-

**I sighed, eyes glancing out of the window, stare fixed on the small spot where the car was usually parked. It wasn’t there.**

_**They are late.** _

**I blinked as the phone placed close to my ear finally flickered to life, the familiar voice of my mother replying to the call.**

**Quick words were exchanged, the reason for this occurrence delayed by some minor news, but I could still remember it.**

“ _**We will be home very soon. Your father received an important call from his uncle that he needed our presence for some legal complications. Nothing worrying but it was for the best to have this solved before things escalated.”** _

“ **Understood,” I muttered calmly. “Just… be careful. The weather.”**

“ _**Your father might be getting older but he is still the professional pilot as he was back when I married him. There is nothing to worry about, sonny.”** _

**A sigh and the call ended. I lingered stuck just for a moment, an odd feeling about this all and… I returned to complete my homework. A yawn leaving my lips as I finished the annoying paper in front of my eyes.**

**Silence reigned, allowing just some frustrated sighing and the scribbling of both my pen and pencil, for hours.**

**Afternoon became evening… and evening became nighttime.**

**I yawned again, glancing at the display of the phone with a tired expression and** _**froze at the hour.** _

**00:00**

**W-What?**

**I tried to stand up but much to my horror, I found myself stuck to the chair. I pushed, I wobbled and even tried to shatter the simple thing. Nothing worked.**

**My breathing, the pace intensified and I feared for a moment of going through hyperventilation.**

_**Th-There has to be an explanation and-** _

“ _**You were too late, sonny.”** _

_**L-Late? W-Why would I-** _

“ _**Your hands are stained, sonny. If only… you were honest. If only… you actually cared.”** _

_**I-I did!** _

“ _**Li-ar~!”** _ **A childish giggle, the world turned pitch-black and I felt suffocating.**

_**A-Am I drowning? I- I need help- H-HELP!-** _

_I blinked awake, my entire body being shaken as a furred hand tried to snap me out of the nightmare._

Eyes widening, I realized that I was sweating just a little and… blinked again.

“O-Oh, you are awake.” Randal’s voice further got me back to reality, my mind cementing my connection out of the hell I was suffering moments ago. I glanced back, the Prime giving me a concerned look and I nodded.

“I-I’m fine.” I said with all the calm I could muster.

I was about to repeat, just to emphasize the point, but ended up avoiding doing anything weird now more than anything. The young man to frown at the reply and didn’t seem to budge…

“You sure?” He asked again, visibly relaxing at my following nod.

I needed to change the topic before he could return back to it. “W-What time is it?” I asked swiftly, catching the dude off-guard.

“I-it’s-” His eyes widened in realization. “Oh- I need to prepare breakfast and-!” I booped his nose as I slowly got up from the floor.

“ _We_ are preparing some breakfast.” I affirmed with renewed determination, cracking a smile to accentuate my decision. “I might have let go of the fact you decided to sleep on the floor _when you have your own bed_ , but like heck I will let you take that burden there.”

There was some surprise in his eyes and he smiled, nodding back with a grateful expression. “I suppose that would be nice.” And with that he proceeded to put on his shirt-

…

_Wait, does that mean that he slept near me without- No! We are… not going to think about that._

Before going to the kitchen, I asked a moment to go to the bathroom.

The cold water of the sink properly brought me out from my sleepiness, from the nightmare’s lingering dread washed away down the sinkhole.

I yawned again as I closed the door of the bathroom behind me, hands over my eyes as I felt them itching a little. I bet I was crying when Randal woke me up, _I… bet that it was ruining my whole attempt at seeming fine._

_**How disappointing.** _

I managed to reach the kitchen, eyes darting between the two occupants and I nodded back at Diana. The woman was reading a newspaper addressing the new prices of various vegetables and other farming products, seemingly taken by the paper as I reached for Randal while he was cutting some bread.

“Sandwiches.” He hummed quietly as he put down the jar containing some peach jam. “Three for you, two for me and mom.”

There wasn’t a need to explain why I needed the extra sandwich and thus I started to help out spread the jam over the slices of bread I was offered.

Moments later we were quietly enjoying the breakfast, Diana actually putting down the newspaper to enjoy her share of food and I found myself endeared by the small moment we were sharing.

It’s been… a long time now.

It was a good way to start the day… I suppose.

As we all finished the sandwiches, Randal was the one that had to go to the bathroom first, orders from the good lady herself. The female Prime was keen to remind her ‘little boy’ how long he would have to spend to take care of his hair and fur, making her son blush at being called out in front of… someone.

Seriously, what was I to them? A stranger… or maybe an acquaintance?

I sighed, the dude going to take some fresh clothes from his room before going through his ‘morning rituals’. I was alone with Diana, the woman didn’t pick up her newspaper as her emerald eyes fixed on my form, causing me to tense up a little.

“So...” The sound felt _so much familiar_ and somewhat terrifying as I knew that it was the prelude to an unpleasant discussion. “How was your sleep? Did you have any issue or-”

“Peachy.” I replied with faux amusement, her eyes rolling at the dumb pun and I nodded. “It was… fine.”

She blinked. “Fine?” I nodded to answer her and she snorted. “Of course.”

I narrowed my eyes at that but wisely decided against pursuing… whatever she was trying to allude to.

“But how did you manage to sleep with a single bed?” Diana asked with a tiny amount of curiosity. “I would think you both headbutted over the whole sleeping arrangement.”

“We kind of… had some minor debate, nothing strange and…” I paused just a moment, thinking the best way to expose that situation. “We both picked the floor.”

She stared silently and then closed her eyes. “You both… picked the floor?”

“I tried to tell him to go to bed and-”

“Randy was kind enough to share the burden.” The Prime huffed, pout plastered on her face as she crossed her arms close to her… abundant chest. _And I was staring a little too much, I reckon._

I sighed. “He was also sleeping shirtless-”

“It was a hot night.” She remarked quickly, eyes narrowing on me and causing me to gulp. “What did you want? That he suffered the unholy heat that is common of this season just because you can’t seem to digest seeing some extra fur-”

“I didn’t mean-” I tried to defend myself, failing as she snorted tiredly.

“Yet you did.” Diana rebuked once more. “And I’m deeply disappointed.”

Silence fell on the room as I lost the need to speak. I did ruin that chance for some amicable conversation and I wasn’t expecting-

“Sorry.”

…What? Why was she apologizing? I was the one that-

“Randal… he never had a paternal figure around while he was under my care.” She slowly admitted. “He is a soft-spoken, strong but… very careful to not offend the others.”

“He is… very nice.” I agreed, making her giggle in the process.

“Very sweet too. A pity he didn’t get any chance to find his love interest yet.” She tilted her head on the side and sighed, a mischievous look directed right at me. “One can only wonder~.”

I sighed. “As much this joke could be funny, I’m not into guys and… I’m fairly sure he isn’t too.”

“Oh, but I know that.” She hummed quietly. “I remember when he had his first crush back in Elementary school, a pity that he decided to back away so suddenly...”

Her green eyes returned to stare at me. “But the reason I asked is that I want to know a little more about you.” A little smile played with her amused features. “My newest worker- my _youngest_ worker yet and I hope one of my good ones too.”

“Really? The youngest?” I asked with some curiosity dripping from my words. “You mean you never hired anyone as young as me?”

“I started to work on the farm with a group of friends.” She told with a nostalgic tone. “They were all good folks that loved the hard-work and the lovely farmer’s life. Sadly they all departed for their own ways and… I started to hire professionals.”

“I saw the photo with you and your children-”

“Good times.” The Prime interrupted with a small smile. “If there is something that I think a mother should prioritize, it is the love and care for her children.”

She tensed a moment, eyes turning to the table and away from any possible confrontation about the matter and I knew she had to have thought of something… painful.

Quickly I went to change the subject for the sake of avoiding the death of this simple chit-chatting.

“So you also have any fun stories about… Randal?” The effect of the question was instantaneous, her eyes almost glowing mirthfully at the memories my words were bringing to her. It was all painted in her face.

“Oh, I sure do and…” A giggle left her lips and she nodded. “Did you notice any ‘particular’ detail about yesterday’s dinner?”

I narrowed my eyes at the table and blinked just once. “You mean with the chicken and the potatoes?”

At her nod, I began humming as cogs in my mind spun quickly to try and understand what could be considered ‘particular’ from her point of view-

“It was spicier than it should have been?” I could remember having some little trouble with the chicken, the spices were stronger than the ones usually used for that kind of dish, and I was glad to have water nearby to save my poor tongue from the burning inferno I glimpsed during the bites.

“Randal loves spicy food since he was a child. One could say that he grew to love hot dishes so much that he decided to specialize in that part of cooking.” She sighed. “Why, there was one time when-”

And thus Diana started to tell the childhood stories of the younger Prime.

Some were incredibly amusing and relatable, like how he would end up breaking some vases while playing around with his younger sibling and their childhood friend; The rest were actually brief ones about some of the discoveries and the growths the boy experienced from being a child and then blooming in a college-bound adult.

I learned that he was done with school life, passing with excellent grades, but tthen ended up spending the last few months at the farm to keep company to his mom.

The confusion was legitimate, especially since I couldn’t fathom why would Randal need to be around the woman.

While she seemed a little tired and she spent some part of her days in her bed, I couldn’t see anything that could hint at some life-threatening illnesses.

Maybe I wasn’t looking at the big picture well enough, but I was fairly sure the woman was mostly fine.

Yet as the stories progressed, I found a name present in all of those that caused Diana to pause more than once.

Mora Linda, from my basic understanding, was Randal’s younger sister and the old woman’s biological daughter. There were pictures of them being happy, some of them happening possibly recently and… she wasn’t there.

Heck, the female Prime sitting at the opposite side of the table seemed keen to avoid lingering over her name and… maybe something about it had happened?

I remember hearing years ago of parents falling ill when their children left the house after some hasty and heated discussion, but I knew that was a massive stretch.

Knowing so little about this subject and being respectful enough to not ask specific questions to the woman as we weren’t that close, I decided to not press for more and accepted the storm of tales from Randal’s childhood.

Speaking of the Devil, the young man returned to the Kitchen while using a towel to clean up his hair and I was quick to stand up. “I suppose it’s my turn and...” I smiled, nodding at Diana. “I hope that this could continue during lunch.”

Her smile twitched, mostly because Randal looked confused and somewhat suspicious over the mysterious agreement we struck before him and I guess he will start to ask for details once I was out of ear-shot.

Entering the bathroom, I was quick to close the door behind me before starting to undress.

Tuning away from my previous thoughts, I prioritized a quick shower as to not waste any more time.

Thirty minutes should be enough to deal with everything.

* * *

Randal sat down in the chair previously taken by the human, eyes fixed on his mother as the woman smiled mischievously. Something was missing, some discussion that was possibly about him but… what could it be?

He opened his mouth to ask the woman how was she feeling, deciding to focus first on her health rather than pester her with some interrogation. Yet his mother beat him with a giggle.

“Our guest is surely a unique individual.” The woman mused calmly and with a certain tone.

He blinked at the quick comment and slowly nodded. “Truly? How so?”

“You might haven’t noticed it but he is still hesitant to interact with those around him.” She explained, eyes directed at the table. “He is very careful with everyone… except you.”

The younger Prime tilted his head in confusion. Matt trusted him? But he seemed to be treating him mostly politely rather than friendly. There wasn’t much to be said about him if only that he respected him and was thankful for his gestures.

“It’s subtle but he is very guarded over his own emotions. Between the two of us he is more at ease around you.” A nod followed and yet the confusion in Randal’s mind wasn’t satisfied by this.

“B-But why?” It just made no sense.

“Oh, it’s not that he genuinely distrusts me, sweetie.” Another giggle left her lips. “It’s… something a little more complicated. I think it’s because… I’m reminding him of someone.”

…What?

“It can happen, once in a while, that people do get nostalgic and can find some individuals around them _familiar_ to those they know about.” His mother continued to explain. “But the way he was looking at me… I’ve seen just once someone this sad and…” She huffed, eyes closed. “I hope I’m wrong.”

“So… I have to keep an eye for him?”

“Just enough to make sure he doesn’t do anything silly, dear.” The woman giggled softly. “But be careful. I’ve heard that there is a newcomer in town and not much is known about… them.”

“Really? Nothing about them?”

Diana sighed. “This person was very careful to not provide anything to the friends around, I just know that they got a flat near the town’s square.”

“I will be looking around then… anything else?”

She smiled. “Just be polite when needed, same for cautious and...” Her eyes calmly turned to the doorstep of the kitchen. “Same for you, young man.”

Randal’s attention shifted right to… Matt. The human blinked in surprise and nodded, his eyes narrowed in minor confusion but seemed fine with the request.

“I think we should go now.” The younger Prime suggested. “Quicker we deal with the tasks, earlier we will get home-”

“So you can coddle me up like you would like to do right now.” His mother interrupted with a mirthful chuckle. “Just make sure to avoid making any mistakes and then things will be alright.”

Then she turned once more at the human. “You will also need some instructions for the work. I will prepare you something to use as a ‘manual’ of sort.”

“Thanks.” He nodded as he waited for Randal to walk closer, waving at her before turning and going toward the front door. “See you later, Mrs. Linda.”

A snort echoed through the hallway and moments later they were walking out of the farm.

* * *

“You mean the mayor has been the same for… a decade now?” I had to ask, the situation ludicrous to even consider.

Very few people back home could manage to accomplish so many years of being elected to the role, but these were mostly corrupt bureaucrats that knew how to make use of bribery. An odd concept, but it supposedly faded back in the perspective that… this was the ideal place.

While not New York by any mean, the town wasn’t truly bad. Even from the early, less-clear sight I got of it during our walk I knew that it was… respectful. The houses looked all clean, the rustling crowds of Primes eagerly busy with shopping and working as everything resembled the perfect agrarian society.

Randal nodded much to my increasing shock. “Not many understand how but… he is working pretty well from my little understanding of politics. The town… is doing fine.” He ended up replying.

“If he hasn’t caused any mess… I guess that is alright.” I commented quietly, I felt so many eyes on me while we went through the swamp of people around us. I spotted few humans, but those were well past their forties and… I guess I stick out like a sore thing among so many… Primes.

Our first stop was the shop specialized in selling farmer tools, the place was… well-furnished. I think I saw more than fifty different types of the same shovel. I’m impressed by the… competitive brands but this was utterly and completely-

“And I think we are done here,” Randal muttered happily while holding a bucket with several instruments inside. I blinked in awe and nodded silently, I guess he was acknowledged over the kind of shopping we were doing and thus we went to pay for the whole arsenal.

The money was like dollars, the paper-kind at least looked like that, but instead of presidents and other important politicians, there were… monuments and important places. _Just like the Euro paper-money._

After we left the shop, we stopped a moment by the entrance of the building to see what was next.

“We need to get some new seeds and then to pick the groceries-”

But before he could finish, I was pushed down by someone. Being that I was holding a few of the new instruments on me, I came down _hard_.

Groaning, I tried to identify my attacker and- “ _S-Sorry! I-I’m late-!_ ”

 _She_ skipped away quickly, papers in her hands as she rushed through the street in a hurry. Randal helped me up, my body ‘appreciating’ the wake-up call and-

_Is something missing?_

I glanced back at the bucket and then… at the retreating figure. She was wearing a cloak of sort, her head and back hidden but I could see- something twitching in one of her pockets, a little trowel dangling in there.

“S-She got one of the instruments- I can catch her-”

“Matt, we can buy another one- _Wait!_ ”

A waste of money, one the farm couldn’t afford. Every penny was essential-

You could consider me mad for being this considerate of a simple gardening trowel, but I while leaving out to go to town, I saw the shape of the farm and the situation wasn’t even decent. _Losing money wasn’t an acceptable option right now._

I started giving chase, my breath growing ragged as I pushed my legs to the very limit to meet up the female Prime. She was incredibly fast, _faster than me_ but I discovered a little advantage in the form of the sea of people that walked in the opposite direction.

The girl was swift in going through the ‘walls’ but she would have to slow down every once in a while, giving me time to catch up the more time I spent on the chase.

Yet as she turned the corner and I followed closely, my advantage vanished in the form of the massive crowd covering the whole square. I could see some smiling fellow and a- _is that a hologram?_ \- spinning some wheel with several clear words on it. _More work, more housing and-_

Wait, is that the mayor-

_Dangit! Not the moment to distract myself with…_

I stopped, my eyes widening as I _lost her in the crowd_. I felt close to fall on my knees, feeling like my efforts were all spent in a fruitless chase.

I glanced back at the mayor and that blasted wheel as it continued to spun… _and spun and spun._

A blink, then two, finally I noticed the silent gust of wind reach all over the area, some shivering, some forced to get closer to their friends and- _a familiar cloak was forced down, revealing a pair of bunny ears and-_

_**Pink hair.** _

She was standing out among the locals and I was quick to capitalize over the blessing I received. Politely making my way through the crowd, I managed to reach the nearby clear zone and gave once more chase.

This time the pursuit ended in a very anti-climatic way as she suddenly stopped, took a brief sight and… entered inside the bar-saloon.

I didn’t enter inside quickly, confused as to why she just stopped there of all places and… I finally ventured in, ignoring the strain

The place was humongous, but not as oppressing as I expected a saloon to be. Silently, I locked my stare over the girl.

A bunny Prime, she was chatting with the older and wrinklier man behind the counter who possibly was the owner of this whole place.

Her fur was a soft gray, her hair a light-pink and she was letting it all flow freely. A kind smile, green eyes attentively staring at the bartender while I slowly approached the counter-

“Oh hello young man, do you need something?” I almost jumped at the owner’s voice, kind of expecting some extra steps in but… I decided to wing it.

“Two questions, does this place accept Euros?” The bulldog Prime frowned but nodded slowly.

“And two, how much for a glass of water?” I pressed on and the manager this time answer a little faster.

“Fifty cents.” He said and I nodded. Pulling out my wallet, I was about to hand over the little coin but _a bigger hand proceeded to beat me to that_.

“I will pay for him.” A deep voice explained curtly and I turned slowly to greet this individual… only to have to stare up and look at an unfamiliar face. I was looking at… a Bull Prime?

His fur was a tone lighter than his dark-brown hair, red eyes staring back at me and a curious smile on his face. “Please, take a seat.”

I blinked and slowly nodded but- stopped a moment to glance at the Bunny Prime. “L-Lady? Just one word.”

She looked surprised at being addressed but nodded, a curious frown on her face. “S-Sure, how can I help you?”

“Something hanging from one of the pockets of your cloak.” Her frown deepened but she checked on it and… her eyes widened.

“O-Oh, a trowel?” Then her attention snapped at me. “Y-You are the one I tripped into back then- but that means you chased me to the saloon?”

“You… you are very fast, I hope you understand that.” She smiled hesitantly at my words, handing over the gardening instrument as I nodded and turned to take a seat near the man that paid for my glass of water.

“W-Wait, you aren’t going to ask for an apology-”

I waved at her. “I understand it was for work and… I kind of understand. There is no need to apologize.” I interrupted quickly and then turned my focus to the Bull Prime.

“So… any particular reason to offer me a drink or-”

“Just found it odd for a human as young as you are to be in this part of the continent. Many teens prefer Prism to this quiet town.” The man said with an intrigued tone.

The bartender huffed. “But you are a newcomer yourself, kind stranger. Why, I think you are but just years older than this young man.”

The brunet sighed and downed the content of his glass slowly. Somehow I felt like that sigh was hiding everything… yet nothing.

Who was this dude?

“B-By the way, I’m Matt Newcastle.” I offered a hand and he grasped it moments later, joining for the handshake.

“Minos.”

No surname, how… odd. Primes still had surnames, Diana and Randal being the best example for the case. I wonder what’s up with this guy…

“So you are one of the newest farmhands, lad?” The manager asked out of curiosity. “Pray tell, where are you working exactly, there just so many places one could find work nowadays.”

I blinked, sipping from my glass. “Oh, I work at Las Lindas.”

Suddenly the saloon seemed to freeze in time as most of the people there ceased with their activity to stare directly at me. Once more I was regretting answering people’s questions.

“So you work for that fiery gal Diana?” There was a fond smile on the elder’s face. “That woman is one of the greatest hard-workers I’ve seen around. A pity she fell ill a few months ago- by the way, how is she?”

“She looked… fine this morning.” I frowned at the sad voice in which the bartender addressed the sickness afflicting the owner of the farm.

“That’s good news then and- oh sorry.” He nodded apologetically at Minos. “I forgot you wished to talk to him-”

“No need to apologize.” The man answered with a polite tone. “I think the topics were interesting and… so you work on a farm?”

“I will start today once I’m back there.” I nodded. “Do you-”

“I planned to spend my stay here to rest actually, I’ve not considered picking a job.” He interrupted calmly and nodding my way.

I blinked at his explanation. “You have to be rich enough to allow yourself to just… rest here. Life expenses are still… expenses.” I said with a curious tone.

“A friend has offered a convenient place with comfortable prices and offering two months of free stay.” He continued and I whistled a little.

“Has to be a very good friend to give you this much,” I commented a little shocked. “Quite close to.”

He nodded. “She is very stubborn and annoying, but she is quite a good person.”

I nodded once more and finished the drink and some stupid realization finally manifested.

_Oh God, I forgot about Randal!_

Panicking just a little, I pushed the glass out of my hands and back to the counter.

“I enjoyed this nice talk, Minos, but sadly I’ve to go-”

“Don’t worry, I understand that with a job you have little free time.” I smiled a little at his understanding comment, then I proceed stood up from my stool and move towards the entrance.

But before I could push the small doors open, I was stopped by a soft hand grasping my shoulder.

“A-Actually sir, I think I’ve to apologize.” I turned to see the bunny waitress bowing her head a little. “I should’ve been more careful and-”

“Look, as I said before, it’s fine. Just… next time keep an eye open to avoid possible tripping.”

“U-understood and-.” She sighed, her green eyes gaining a determined glint as she stared right into mines. “I-I’m Taffy.”

I frowned, a little confused by the sudden introduction, but still managed a little smile. “Matt, Matt Newcastle.”

Her smile increased and I nodded, waving as I left the bar and found myself staring at a very annoyed, possibly angry Randal Hawthorne. Brown eyes narrowed on me, I could see the hurt in those and I flinched.

“I got-”

“We are going to the farm.” I flinched again at the calm tone and I knew I messed up big time.

The walk back home was… awkwardly silent. I preferred to not tempt my fate with how furious the Dog Prime looked and thus I spent the whole moment looking around at the various trees and… trees.

Greeting his mother as we reached the porch, Randal entered the house in a hurry, causing Diana to look at me accusingly. I looked at the floor and… approached her slowly as I knew that a lecture was now unavoidable.

I was truthful while narrating how the shopping went and how things ended up escalating. She looked annoyed, not truly that much angry, but she still deemed it right to have my cheeks pinched painfully and mercilessly.

Five minutes of constant pinching passed and I was given a simple order.

Plant some seed and pick the fruits that were ripe for the harvest. She handed over a small notebook with some notes and returned inside, leaving me alone in the vastness of this farm.

I sighed, mind weighed by guilt as I picked a hoe and started to walk towards the empty area where the cabbages were growing, my intention being of planting two new lines of cabbages.

And with that my first day of work at Las Lindas begin, a silent but well-done job that did nothing to soothe the little issue between me and Randal.

After seven hours of strenuous labor, I accepted dinner without hesitation. Night came and I was left alone in the floor as the legitimate owner of the room picked the bed for this ‘occasion’, I found sleep easier than usual, maybe for tiredness at the new work or… maybe I just _wanted to sleep and do nothing else._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> First day is done. I had to go through the draft several times, trying to get a clean job done and… I’m happy with what I got. Hopefully this isn’t something limited to me.
> 
> Quick Explanation over the year I picked and the timeline: Picking the proper year that could best represent the closest to the beginning of the series proved to be… difficult. I started by taking into account Ambar’s history lesson about the Primes, how the Final War began during Humanity’s Age of Curiosity (LL104) and that the Unification and creation of Neo-Earth happened before anyone at the Farm was even born (LL514). Considering that with ‘Age of Curiosity’ Ambar was possibily Mankind’s Space Race and that the oldest being at the farm is Randal (33YO), I can only assume that it’s been forty years ca. since the unification and thus (1969+40~) I can say that it is 2007 ca. when Las Lindas begins.  
> EDIT: Just found that there is another data that I had forgotten about in the first re-read of… everything. Mora says while answering a question regarding her Southern Cross that her Great-Grandfather was one of the first Primes to reach Neo Earth… over two hundreds years ago. Thus I decided to set for 2217 ca.
> 
> EDIT: Once again credits to Ant0nius from FF for the Grammar corrections!


	3. Shopping and Reconciliation

**Chapter 3** **: Shopping and Reconciliation**

It was morning.

Birds were chirping, some sunlight was passing through the curtains of the room’s window… and there was no human lying on the floor.

Randal had to blink once, then twice to finally grasp the fact Matt wasn’t in the room.

Brown eyes glinting confusion as the Collie Prime got up from the bed and started to give a proper look around, further cementing the idea that the human wasn’t there in his room.

Ears twitched, he noticed that the house was oddly silent at that hour.

If the young man wasn’t sleeping, then he was either in the bathroom going through his usual routine or he was staying by the kitchen while doing… something.

Putting on a shirt and slowly walking by the door, the Prime peeked by the hallway, with his attention mostly directed at the area where the closest bathroom was.

There was silence. He couldn’t even see any light from there, and his confusion and unknown dread started to intensify even more.

The kitchen was the only place where the human could have gone and… the Prime went to check there.

He was calm, yet while his mind contemplated the events of the day from before, he found it quite difficult to properly judge the rash behavior Matt displayed.

It was legitimate for the young man to show dedication to his new job, to be cautious with the tools and making sure to not lose them, but the way he rushed to the ‘rescue’ of a simple trowel?

There was devotion and then there was desperation.

Randal was surprised by the interest the human showed in making a good job, something that was mirrored by how he proceeded with his first work-shifts.

He didn’t need any major advice, his knowledge regarding the ‘simple’ tasks proved that he was capable in accomplishing the duties at Las Lindas.

Yet it was his mother’s way to address Matt’s intents that made the whole watch incredibly… difficult.

There were praises, some comments about improvements required in some of his actions, but what truly turned things against Randal was…

“What do you think about it?”

The ‘innocent’ question about his personal input over the various topics regarding Matt proved to be a very complicated mess. He was honest, bluntly so, but most of his comments were positive.

It didn’t help, much to his subsiding anger over what had happened back to the town.

He was ditched by someone he was trusting to follow his words. He was left to deal with the other tools while also trying to find the elusive human wherever he went.

The folks all around were kind enough to give him some directions, and it took him fifteen minutes to track down the young man to the local bar.

Just as Randal was about to enter the building, the small saloon-like doors were opened by the very individual he was seeking, Matt freezing instantly, eyes going wide open, at seeing his infuriated expression.

But anger was something of strange emotion Collie Prime to experience.

It was rare for him to hold a grudge for too long, sleep generally helped to cool down his fiery self and give him some clarity to his mind so he could study better the matter.

After an eight-hours long sleep, Randal was certain that they were both at fault over the predicament.

Matt could have been a little more understanding of the fact he was _literally_ leaving someone to burden the entire arsenal of tools, while the Prime could have dealt with the situation in a less childish manner.

Anger was fine, but being partially enraged by this situation? It was a little beyond him.

He sighed, his nerves weren’t certainly enjoying the minor stress of bickering with his very mother over the fact she needed to take her medicines.

Diana Linda had been quite a wall when either he or her other children tried to avoid to take the needed medicines when they were sick, so dealing with this situation where the roles had somehow inverted… was draining.

The woman was strong but not as she was just a few years ago. She was waning, ever so slowly as the sudden disappearance of Mora led to a worryingly increased pace of the illness.

It was an unknown one, something that doctors from all around were unable to truly understand the causes nor the proper medications to counter it.

The medicines she was supposed to take were meant to slow down the pace but…

_He shouldn’t be thinking about this!_

He turned the corner that led to the kitchen, the only occupant there smiling warmly as she folded the newspaper and turned her full attention to her son.

“Good morning, Randy.”

He returned the smile, nodding as he took the seat by the table and… noticed the two sandwiches lying over a simple tissue. He frowned, the woman sighing as she started to tap by the table. “You know, you could at least greet your mother before focusing on other people.”

Her disappointed scoff was relayed in such a joking tone that the Collie Prime merely nodded with a tiny embarrassed smile.

“Sorry mom, and good morning to you too,” He replied with a soft tone. “Just trying to understand where-”

“Oh, he isn’t at the farm right now,” The Bovine Prime mused calmly, far too calmly for Randal’s paranoia. “He should be back in two hours from now.”

The young male frowned and slowly nodded as he took the first sandwich in his hands. It was slightly cold, making him question how long has passed since it was made.

“Matt was rather considerate in making sure that you too had your breakfast ready,” Diana commented her sight once more directed at the paper she had forgotten for just a moment. “The young man hopefully will deal with the farmer’s market well.”

Randal froze mid-bite, a strong effort required to avoid chocking on the small piece of toast. “Y-You sent him alone?!”

“As far as I’m concerned, he is old enough to be able to deal with selling the fruits and vegetables that have flourished just recently. He did mention that he had some first-hand experience on the matter, and if I have to base his truthfulness by his more recent works, then I will put my trust over it,” The woman huffed in some annoyance.

“H-He- B-But there was so much that needed to be brought to town-” The Collie Prime reasoned, only to be caught silent by the amused snort of his mother.

“The cart was completely filled, very heavy… and you should have seen how many times he did slip on the mud while trying to pull it away from the starting point.”

A brief giggle left her lips, then Diana sighed.

“He was rather lucky that one of his newest friends, the newcomer is… rather fascinating. Quite strong, reminds me much of… Nevermind.”

Now that was a first, Randal thought silently. There were just a handful of things that got the woman to suddenly change topic nowadays and… he hoped that it wasn’t anything to worry about.

There was enough placed in his plate to keep up with other developments and…

What was he supposed to do now? With Matt already in town and with his mother needing her medicines, there was little he could do to soothe the tension he had with the human.

He sighed tiredly taking a small bite at his toast and deciding to wait for the young man to return.

Hopefully, Matt really knew what he was doing…

* * *

I should have asked for some directions.

The town nearby Las Lindas might be small compared to the city where I grew up, but the map of the place was still something that I had yet to fully memorize and…

Minos was also clueless about the place where I was supposed to commit myself for some… negotiations. I had gone to a Farmer’s Market before, but I’ve never took part in a transaction as important like this one.

It took almost an hour to finally get to the small square purposed for the Market and, since it was still fairly early in the morning, finding an empty spot to convert into the ‘Las Lindas’ corner proved to be quite the easy task.

Once the cart was settled on the side, the Bull Prime decided to also help in placing down the products in a proper order. I was keen to avoid being overly-zealous over this matter, knowing that I was already stretching this ‘new’ friendship with the man by having him do this much already.

I was indebted to him to a certain degree… and yet I felt like he was actually having little issue over the situation. Actually, he looked very… interesting over the work itself.

It reminded me of when I would be-

Bored.

Once this second step was done and completed, I picked two of the chairs I brought to peacefully wait and endure the full day at the market. Setting them a few instances behind the products, causing Minos to look… intrigued.

“You wouldn’t mind if I decided to join you for… this?” He looked partly surprised, maybe a tiny bit hesitant and… curious at the same time.

“I mean, you did say that you don’t have much to do here and...” I shrugged, giving him a genuine smile. “I think we can spare some time chatting.”

He raised a curious brow. “Only chatting?”

I was quick to perceive the fact he was referring to the… job itself. I didn’t have the necessity, nor the intention of bringing the man in some… difficult business.

I could see a quick flinch at that prospect and, frankly enough, I couldn’t help but understand him.

I guess he wasn’t much of the… social guy.

“Only chatting.” I replied calmly, getting a small nod from him as he sat down on the offered chair and… I almost snorted at how ‘tiny’ it was compared to his size. Seriously, I wonder how self-conscious is he about the particular frame he had compared to the rest of the people in this quiet town.

The discussion wasn’t… as exhaustive as I did expect it to be. The issue that limited my capacity to learn a little ‘more’ about the Bull Prime was a similar personal bit we found each other sharing.

We were both unwilling of giving too much about ourselves to the other. It was either shyness or motivated secrecy, which drew a fine line about the topics that were allowed to those that were easily ignored or twisted with their different meanings.

It was a clever way to pass the little time before the beginning of the opening hour at the Market.

Minos was immensely acculturated in Primes’ civilization, while I was keen to give snippets of Mankind the man was still unaware of.

It was a fair exchange that was soon derailed multiple times as the potential clients started to arrive.

People were drawn to the new section of the market. Some were farmers themselves that wished to gauge the crops from Las Lindas.

Some were open to recognize the care put on the growth of the products, while a small minority was quick to keep quiet while giving greedy looks at the vegetables presented to be sold.

Minos’ presence did also increase for a time the number of ‘clients’ as many young women decided to ‘storm’ the stand. I could only guess that those were the kind of girls that were ready to wed and had their minds ensnared by the idea of ‘the prince’ kind of guy to marry.

If the Bull Prime actually noticed the collective attention he was receiving from the women, he was making some effort to not show it or at least had his sight directed to other ‘interesting’ stuff.

People started to buy, the prices I had set were slightly higher than a good part of the other farmers, but the quality seemed to be gaining the interest of a good chunk of the clients in the Market.

It was a lively section of the city, I realized fairly quickly.

It wasn’t certainly the Market back home and… I was glad that I was receiving this much attention.

The more products I continued to sell through hard-work and careful pricing, the more the chances of restoring Las Lindas to its original glory were going to get higher.

Business was going smoothly and I think Minos was starting to get a little fascinated in the work itself too.

Not enough to ask to join, but enough to actually place some minor criticisms about the price of some of the available vegetables, pointing out either that a slight reduction or increase of the prices in some of the circumstances by evaluating the attention the specific edible food was getting.

Four hours went by without any issue, almost lifting my hopes about ending this first session without any annoyance and… I was proved wrong when I had to deal with… her.

The Mouse Prime had blonde hair and gray fur, her violet orbs were boring onto my brown ones. She was quiet and engaging in that strange staring competition, a sore figure standing out from the other folks channeling by the stand.

She stood there for forty minutes, waiting for the stand to get a little more deserted before finally speaking.

“So you work for… the old farm?” She mused quietly, her tone restrained to not show too much emotion but… I did feel some curiosity. A steel-like kind of curiosity to boot!

“There are many ‘old farms’ here, miss. But if you mean Las Lindas, then yes-”

“You are quite young,” The girl continued with her sharp tone, slowly giving out the reason of her presence right now. “And you don’t seem to have much hope to develop in this situation.”

Suddenly I found myself staring at a business card and frowned at its words.

‘Alexandria Dairy’?

“The largest company in Gossamer,” The girl continued to explain with a confident smirk plastered on her face. “I’m Tootsie Roswell and I’m a close confident to the current CEO, Alejandra Coldthorne.”

Oh… boy. This was an attempt to recruit me and… in broad daylight?

I was slightly irritated by the fact it was happening right when I was ‘starting’ with my job but I found myself unable to truly blame Tootsie for trying this. I can only suppose but… I think companies this big were quick to fall if a certain pace wasn’t used. An aggressive pattern that allowed the containment and the weakening of potential rivals.

In a normal situation, I would have asked for more details and, if the proposal was that attractive, I would have accepted after some pondering. Yet, with a pending promise that _had_ to be maintained, I found myself shaking my head.

“I wish to humbly apologize, Ms. Roswell, but I find myself unable to truly to consider this kind and generous proposal.” My words caused her to tense, a surprised look painting her face, but I decided to continue and give a proper explanation before assumptions were given and… animosity born from this situation. “Right now, I find myself morally obliged to continue my work at Las Lindas. I’ve a duty of sort about making sure the farm recovers to a good shape so that it can be entrusted to the children of the current owner.”

The Mouse Prime blinked, looking less tense than before and… a little annoyed. It wasn’t anger at least…

“And I suppose I can’t ask about those ‘moral obligations’, can I?” Tootsie pressed on with a curious tone.

“Sadly no.” I replied curtly before giving another lengthy speech. “As a matter of fact, I can say that from the way you describe both ‘Alexandria Dairy’ and the CEO, the workplace seems to be rather well-planned and very respectful of its workers. I can’t promise anything at the moment, but I will contact in case I find myself free from those obligations… if you can extend this offer at that point, that is.”

She sighed and hummed, seemingly thinking about the last bit of my explanation. “You are asking… a lot from me but-” A smile adorned her face. “You have been quite polite, and I think you aren’t that bad.” Her hands reached for the very pocket where she took the business card and… handed me another. This one about… Tootsie herself.

‘Tootsie Roswell, Head of the Scientific Department at Alexandria Dairy.’

She was specialized in… Engineering and Development? Now that is… actually a surprise.

“Contact me personally if you find yourself freed by the ‘obligations’, I will see if we can find a place for you by then.” She giggled and nodded. “Thanks for sparing some words, Mr. Newcastle.”

I nodded and then… my eyes snapped wide open.

‘How the- How the heck does she know my name?!’

Before I could even ask about this, the Mouse Prime was seen retreating away from the Market, disappearing in the still substantial crowd of people filling the town’s square. I blinked, shocked by what just happened and-

“That was quite the stimulating speech.” Minos commented, reminding me of his presence and making me glance at him. “And… ‘moral obligations’?”

I blinked again, momentarily contemplating if it would have been the right thing to do if I told him or not about… the ‘why’ of my current predicament. The Bull Prime looked extremely genuine, I would even dare to say he was as genuine as Randal was.

I had to hold back a flinch at remembering how things had turned out with the Collie Prime but… no, I had other things to focus on.

“I… I suppose I can tell you.” I muttered quietly. There were just a few of people now wandering, the closing hour was getting close and there were barely few products left to sell so it was the best moment to have this kind of chatting.

“I’m… not from the Gossamer region.” I said in the calmest tone possible. “I’m not even from the continent.”

He blinked, tilting his head to the side and sporting a confused but interested expression on his face.

“That sounds… like it has more to it.” He commented rightfully and I nodded.

“A few days ago I was… in Europe. I was spending a night by the pub and… enjoying some time alone.” I narrated, getting an understanding nod as a gesture to continue. “The following morning I… woke up in Mrs. Linda’s orchard.”

Minos frowned. “You mean that you don’t remember how you got there? I think the timing would also be quite weird.”

“That is one of the reasons why I prefer to keep by Las Lindas.” I replied quietly. “I think there is something… going on that caused my ‘sudden re-appearance’. And then there is also the bet.”

There was a pause, one that was exploited by the Prime as he went for the appropriate query.

“A bet? Can you indulge some more details?” He did ask about it, yet the slight seriousness starting to develop in his features about the curious case I was the main element.

“Mrs. Linda was kind enough to offer me food and shelter for now, but we ended up agreeing that I can’t just live at the farm without doing something productive… I’m now a worker at the farm and I’ve a month to bring Las Lindas to good conditions.” I stopped, sighing only once and then went to see what reaction Minos had.

He was silent, his red eyes showing none of the previous emotions as he thought well about the circumstance presented and… then he nodded.

“You are… an interesting individual, Matt.” The Prime commented cautiously. “And I appreciate you decided to tell me this important thing. I think it shows that you-”

“You are a good friend, Minos.” I interrupted with a tired voice. “Like… I didn’t tell you this just to show that I trust you- it’s more about the fact I can’t hold things up for… for too long.” I admitted with a sigh.

He blinked, a smile slowly appearing on his face as he nodded. “You are a good friend too, Matt. And while I don’t think I should tell you this so soon… I understand the need of telling someone about your troubles.”

I looked up at him. “Did you have your own mess?”

He merely nodded and I sighed. “I guess that we have more than a few things.”

There was some silence, but it wasn’t anything close to oppressive or awkward. It took me a while to recover from the heart-felt discussion and I started to think it was a good time to pack what was left on the cart and get going.

I opened my mouth, ready to call the ‘day’ and-

“W-Wait!” We both stopped and turned to the origin of the voice directed at us-

My sight was quickly drawn to the approaching… _pink-haired bunny_.

“Oh? Hi Taffy.” The girl stopped by the stand, pausing a moment to catch her own breath and then… smiled.

“Sorry, I know it’s closing hour but… can I browse a little?”

I blinked, glancing at Minos and nodding. “I guess we can spare some time for a last client.”

She nodded happily and started to look around with a soft humming building in her throat.

“Do you have any apples left?” She asked while her eyes scanned for that specific product.

“I think we have some the-there.” I pointed at the small wooden cage with the last dozen of red apples, my face getting a darker shade of pink as I noticed now that her… clothes was fairly revealing.

It was a simple, normal yellow sundress. It was her size and all, the issue being that-

Actually… it wasn’t the dress. I did remember seeing the cream-white fluff coming by her cleavage back when I first met her in the saloon-bar. But now that there wasn’t that much attention to any ‘important’ object like in that situation, I found my stare wandering to that fluff and… I noticed her bosom.

_The fluff will be the cause of an early demise..._

I tried to act as if nothing had happened, sure that the young bunny Prime hadn’t noticed my stare… but I soon realized that _someone_ still noticed.

Minos was giving me a teasing smirk, which caused the pink stain to become red.

He didn’t speak, he didn’t give any other reaction other than that smirk and-

“I will get six of those.” Taffy’s soft voice reached my ears, causing me to turn and nod quickly.

“I-I see.” I gulped nervously as I gave her the proper pricing. Nodding, she picked up the rightful amount of money from her money pouch and… stopped a moment after giving the coins to me.

I blinked, panicking at her concerned look. “Is something wrong?”

Her question was… partly expected. But that doesn’t exactly mean I was by any means prepared to answer it.

“I- uhhhh-”

“He finds your sundress lovely.” Minos intervened… to save me? The comment caused the girl’s green eyes to go wide and… then she blushed at the compliment.

“O-Oh?” She nodded to herself. “I-I suppose- I mean, thank you for th-the compliment, Mr. Newca- Matt!”

Her blush worsened at the brief outburst at the end but she seemed to be capable of picking the bag now containing the apple.

“S-Sorry, I think I should be going- bye!” Without hesitation the girl turned around and started to skip away from the square… but not before revealing her small and fluffy tail-

Dangit! Brain-

_I’m trying to work something here, boss!_

With my face burning fiercely at this unexpected encounter, I slowly turned my eyes to the Bull Prime and… frowned at the twitching smile in his face.

“I bet you are going to laugh, aren’t you?” I dared him, sporting an angry look and-

He chuckled loudly. He chuckled so hard that moments later I found myself joining that laugh j-just because of how infectious it was-

Nothing else!

* * *

Returning to Las Lindas was easier compared to the effort I had to put in getting Minos to accept some money for helping me with the cart.

As much as I wanted to save up on expenses, I couldn’t seriously even think of not giving people their dues. The man had helped me with an essential bit of the job and it was only true of me to give him his rightful pay.

He left by the entrance with a minor pout, but soon smiled a little and waved as to salute before truly leaving. I waved back with a big smile and, once I was left alone and away from his sight, resumed a gloomier look.

Now it was time for another awkward lunch and… then work again. Sighing, I started to walk towards the house and… I was greeted by some loud giggling from the kitchen?

I blinked, the noise of my soft steps reinforced by the creaking wood planks making the hallway’s floor. I was partly confused as to… why Diana would be out of bed right now?

The woman was generally stuck in her room at this hour, tuckered in her heavy but warm blankets and I then peeked by the entrance of the room, only to stop fixed on a specific character of the two here.

Randy looked incredibly nervous, sitting on the soft-blue carpet near the living room section of the kitchen. The reason for this attitude was related to the state of his… clothing. The shirt had been ditched, same for his pants and he was wearing only his underwear.

“It would seem like you have just a try, sweetie. You sure you want to continue?” Diana asked mirthfully from her little throne made by pillows as she was still wearing all of her clothes and looking smug.

What the heck?

Green eyes ended up spotting my peeking head and the woman’s smile widened.

“Oh my, it would seem that Matt is back from his task.” The announcement caused Randal to turn his attention to me, face burning a soft red as he was indeed in quite the precarious situation. “I hope the day went well.”

I slowly nodded, my brain trying to catch up with the madness before my eyes. “I- We made more than planned.” I replied calmly.

She blinked, looking fairly surprised. “Is that so? That’s some good news.” She smiled a genuine smile, breaking from the act. “Can you leave the money by the table and… come here and join Randy?” She ended up dema- _requesting._

I tensed a little but nodded as I went to comply to her words and… went to sit close to the Collie Prime. He didn’t greet me, and thus I didn’t greet him as I focused on Diana.

His mother stared at me with a mischievous glint and I felt like I did the worst mistake ever in accepting this predicament without other hints about… _what was going on._

“I can see you are wondering what is going on with my son and…” She giggled. “The answer would be quite amusing.”

I don’t think I will be laughing, whatever she is planning to do-

“You see, I decided to make a… game with Randy to solve the current sleeping situation. The winner will decide where you will be sleeping for the rest of your stay.”

...What the fuck?

“And I was thinking about the barn.” She added with a small smile. “Or the porch.”

Both terrible choices as the barn had a hole in its roof and was impossible to sleep in if it started to rain, while the porch’s floor was sturdy and creaky.

Why the heck was this even happening?

“It’s about picking or adding clothes… or passing the turn. Randy is ‘for some reason’ passing all the time...”

The young man stared down, embarrassment evident in his face and… I can see the issue. Being that he was her son, of course he wouldn’t go as far as have his sickly mother remove clothes to keep her warm.

It was a sensible reaction and… why was I here now?

“And, I’m here because-” I tried to ask, only to be interrupted by Diana.

“Since Randy is at his last try, I want to know if you are willing to make a little change to the game.”

…I have a bad feeling about this…

“What if you picked my son’s place and we switch the reward? What if the one we are deciding where he should sleep is… Randy?”

My eyes widened at where this was going and I find myself in quite the dilemma.

As much as I didn’t want to sleep outdoors for… the reasons previously brought up, I wouldn’t certainly do this to Randal.

We were at odds, sure, but to have him to sleep outside until… I left?

That would be cruel… but it would give me a chance to win all...

“So you want me to… play this game about-”

“Removing, adding or… do nothing about clothes.” She answered quickly, starting to get annoyed by the delay. “Do you accept or not?”

I glanced once more at Randal and he stared up at me with some hesitation.

…This is gonna suck. Like really!

I sighed heavily and nodded. “I accept.”

A giggle and the game began with Diana being the one beginning with the ‘game’. Was this even a game to begin with?

“C’mon! Remove a piece of clothing.” She demanded and I nodded by… removing one of my socks. She paused and pouted a little at the choice but… it was a legitimate pick.

Now it was my turn and I had to think quickly. I can’t remove any clothes from her, nor I can pass the turn like Randy did-

Adding clothes was the only choice but… using my own clothes? It would be detrimental at best. But what-

I glanced at Randal’s clothes and… I had an idea. A smile surged from my lips and I glanced back at the Collie Prime.

“Randy, I need you to… tell me if you showered yet.” My request caused some frowns from both the son and his mother, but the young man replied.

“I… I didn’t not. Not yet. Why?” He was so clueless…

“Pass me your shirt?” His frown deepened just as his confusion did but I ended up receiving the sweat-filled shirt and… I think I should explain what is going on.

Two days ago, I discovered from Randal himself that the reason why he showered so frequently was related to the fact he had… tons of fur. Compared to many Primes that have just a layer of fur, someone like Randal developed much more and… sweated a lot.

Thus, to avoid causing any issue with the smell, the man has to shower a lot, something that was annoying when he hit puberty but he soon learned to master in the following years.

Right now in my hands as my nose scrunched up at the smell, I was holding the key to victory!

I stood up and made just a step towards the woman and… Diana realized what was going on, dread spreading in her face.

“Y-You wouldn’t-!”

My smile widened. “I do~!”

I took another step.

“It wouldn’t f-fit!”

“You never said it had to be properly wore so…” I prepared a scarf-like cloth with it and her eyes widened even more. “Here is your new scarf!”

“M-Maybe w-we can talk about this-”

“Do you surrender?” I finally asked, raising an eyebrow and… waiting.

She blinked, thinking about those and… smiled. “Nope~.”

“Good then~!” I replied with the same happy tone and put the ‘scarf’ on the proper place.

The effect was instantaneous and Diana flinched at the ‘torture’ she was supposed to endure for the rest of the situation.

“P-Please- We can- We can play nude monopoly?”

I frowned. “No. You wanted to play this game and-”

“N-Now you enjoy it.” Both the woman and me turned to glance at Randal in surprise, the Dog Prime blushing once more at the attention. “W-What?”

The older Prime blinked and then- “I… I concede.”

It was… expected actually. From both the Collie and me as we both didn’t show any particular surprise at the announcement, causing the woman to look at us with a surprised look.

“W-What?” She asked and I sighed.

“Diana, I think Randal and I are old enough to recognize an attempt to get a grudge mended and… I admit I should be apologizing for-”

“I am at fault too, Matt.” The younger Prime interrupted with a small smile. “I shouldn’t have reacted that badly.”

“Bu-But it was a correct reaction, I did mess up by ditching you like that-”

“Because you were doing it for the farm.” He stated with a serious tone. “I understand that you are putting yourself on the line to bring Las Lindas up but- but you are a little over-zealous over it.”

“Just a bit.” I admitted with a sorry tone. “I should haven’t jumped in action without thinking and… I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too and… I forgive you.”

A terribly awkward hug ensued as I noticed fairly quickly how sweaty his fur was right now. The giggles from Diana didn’t help at all in enduring this all and-

“By the way, Matt, can I ask you about something?” The woman intruded in the moment, the embrace ending as I graced her with my attention.

“Did you perhaps get a… female acquaintance while you were at the Market~?” She asked teasingly, causing me to frown at first. “I saw you smiling when you entered through the gates.”

“How did you-”

“She did stare a lot by the window.” Randy pointed at the window by the end of the couch and the perspective it gave over the entrance.

Nodding at that reply, I returned to the main issue.

“I didn’t get a female a-” I froze, my face went pale as I realized at what she was alluding to. My mind went back at Taffy and… the fluff.

The blush was unavoidable and some stuttering followed. “I might have- I mean, I know of someone- but I mean-”

More giggles ensued, followed by Randal smiling at the light teasing happening.

After trying and failing miserably to explain what really happened at the Farmer’s Market, Randal and I went to prepare some lunch while the woman rested for a while in the couch, removing from herself her son’s shirt from her neck.

The lunch turned in an even funnier event as poor Randy was now the subject of his mother’s teasing and… a few laughs happened.

Overall, maybe this situation at the farm wasn’t as terrible as expected…

_**If only I had been careful to not jinx it and confound the calm before the storm for an everlasting peace!** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> Not a OcxTaffy Story. She is still going to be parried with Randal and… no, they will not met before their canon encounter. I’m trying to keep things… carefully set within Canon.
> 
> Also the fluff is… alluring.
> 
> P.S. I’ve been at a Farmer’s Market years ago and I remember having spent hours enjoying the products there. Lots of cheap food too.
> 
> EDIT: Credits to Ant0nius for grammar corrections!


	4. Plans and Acceptance

**Chapter 4** **: Plans and Acceptance**

It was still early in the morning but she couldn’t care any less.

The trusty light that had been with her for years now re-lit after the late hours spent working the previous night. Time was money and… Alejandra Coldthorn was not going to let any opportunity to be wasted, especially with the recent developments in the Gossamer region.

A thought that had been present with her ever since Tootsie had returned from the scout mission to see who was this curious new worker at the decaying _but somehow_ _still profitable_ Las Lindas farm.

Said oddity garnered even more interest from the CEO as the Mouse Prime was keen to point out an interesting detail from this very individual.

Matt Newcastle was a human, quite peculiar to find one in this region of all places as only a handful preferred the Prime-dominated continent to the Older and the Old World, and he had kindly and politely declined the offer given to him by Ms. Roswell.

It wasn’t the first time the young woman had to deal with some possible new additions to the company that weren’t that attracted by the wealth and power the rising Alexandra Dairy was showing all around. Sentimentalism, a fond attachment to the current workplace that denied her a logical chance to recruit those specialists.

Saddening situations that were barely got her annoyed, not even remotely. Yet what had happened with Mr. Newcastle had left her quite… restless.

It wasn’t like Alejandra found the refusal itself irritating, but rather the woman perceived it as an ‘unplanned’ jab on her way… because of the context it was connected too.

It’s been a full year now since she had _ that discussion _ with Diana, the kind lady that had been there for the then-little Coldthorn had been adamant to not even consider the proposal of giving Las Lindas’ lands to the new businesswoman to try and bring it up to modernity.

Maybe it was how she had worded it, her tone, or maybe even the subject itself but… that day, Alejandra saw the patient mother showing the angriest bit within herself. It was a brief but fiery reply, one that still left her unnerved and also terrifying.

Her former caretaker had always been… quite blunt with her mindset, but to see the predicament explode in her face? It was one of the few times since she left High School that the CEO felt… small and helpless.

Like little Alej, a small and afraid girl that would barely socialize with those around her…

But while back then there would have been Randy and _ Mora _ to help her get up and deal with an obstacle along her way to become an adult, now Alejandra had just the experts she had hand-picked from a lengthy list and… Tootsie.

The secretary has been around for two years now, being incredibly supportive and capable of helping her with the paperwork/meetings. An Ace of All Trades, she would have considered the Mouse Prime if… not for the very quirky attitude the younger female would have when dealing with complex devices.

It was her hobby and also her work since she was the leader of the Development Section of the company, having more than legitimately claimed such a position within Alexandra Dairy with her innate ‘Mad Scientist’ intelligence.

Her innovative mind was attached to an amusing but sometime worrying streak of insanity here and there, but Tootsie was cautious enough to not create mess… rather helping Alejandra to not make one along the way…

She sighed as the screen of her PC came to life, her trusty machine immediately revealing her well-ordered desktop hidden behind a two-keys security system. Folders within folders, and files containing sensible information about the company’s status and planned program.

Her cursor moved swiftly, opening the folder containing the ‘Future’ details and soon hovering over the file named after the human working at Las Lindas.

A quick research prior to make first contact had been made and the results were quite… average.

Matt Newcastle was actually ‘Mattia Castlenuovo’, a decision to switch to a more English-attuned name that sounded rightful since he had been living for a long time out of his native country and all around the United States to work as a Journalist.

Well-praised for his hard-work by his previous bosses, the young man had only a handful of details that eluded her first search, mostly about his educational level. 

She could remember having been rather surprised by the fact the human had gone for almost four years of Economy, having obtained a master’s degree from the faculty, but having seen nothing that could have even alluded to him having made use of the ‘powerful paper’ in his hands.

Her confusion intensified when she ended up finding a decade-old newspaper headline.

‘ **Grave Accident! Car crash takes couple’s lives.** ’ 

The article would then go in details as it added more on Matt’s personal life within the whole familiar picture. A lone child that lived a safe but not easy childhood, moving all over his hometown in various cheap houses as to keep up with the father’s work, the man having devolved his entire life to hard-work as a simple bureaucratic clerk.

A miser pay that conditioned the young man’s lifestyle but didn’t deter him from pursuing higher education, the degree having been obtained… just as his parents were taken away in that accident.

Alejandra could remember how her own father had passed away just mere months from her completion of her studies, the memory being burned in her brain as she had to endure the worst three hours of her life.

Three hours of empty hope that the conditions of her sole parent would have recovered from that heart-attack… but it was all in vain and she had knew that even back then.

Painful memories that weren’t very suppressed as those served to remind her that someone that cared for her had sacrificed his life to make sure she would get the perfect life, a deign life.

And here she was, building the future for her legacy and making a name while at it.

But while the Cow Prime didn’t back away from the challenge, the human did by denying himself the chance of being in a high position.

It was odd, but also understandable from a deeper perspective.

The rest of his life was blurred after the accident, having little to no friends in his temporary jobs and making his own presence as a lone worker rather than a social butterfly… like he was before any of that happened.

Alejandra hummed as her blue eyes lazily stared at his photo for some time, as if trying to get him to ‘tell more’ about himself. Childish, she knew that, but something born from boredom couldn’t be any mature nor interesting to anyone.

She closed her eyes, a sigh leaving her lips as she patted her cheek, trying to get herself out from the post-sleep state her mind was. Her focus rekindled as the young woman scrolled down to study once more the known info about him and… she decided that this couldn’t do.

The profits recently made by the farm showed a 250% increase compared to the previous months and if this trend continued to last… well, things were going to become quite interesting with her board.

An idea popped up and was almost shot down by her own mind as she first thought of it. She couldn’t approach Diana Linda, it’s been a full year now since she had seen her and… the Coldthorn was far too prideful to concede an apology  _ just yet _ .

It wasn’t pettiness speaking, but the woman had been building up a strong personality that couldn’t be brought down not even for a moment as her company continued to rise through the polls.

Thus that idea was partly discarded as only the ‘visit’ part remained. 

Tootsie had also gone to ask around about the ‘newcomer’ of the town and the locals were keen to point out how the youth would be walking around early in the morning and then would return to the farm just before lunch.

Today was going to be a busy day with appointments that couldn’t be delay as of now, but tomorrow… was an easier day. 

Just as he nodded to herself, a cup of steaming coffee landed carefully on her desk, making her almost jump in surprise as she turned to see her smiling assistant. The Mouse Prime looked incredibly happy, holding cup of chocolate milk in her other hand.

“ Good morning, boss.” She chirped mirthfully, causing Alejandra to sigh and nod with a smile.

“ Good morning, Tootsie.” The CEO replied with a less-tired tone, quickly sipping at the hot but delicious coffee. “I see that you’re already up and working. Good.”

The blonde nodded and took one of the two seats in front of the desk. “I just wanted to finish some of yesterday’s work.” She admitted with an uneasy smile. “Had little trouble with some of the more annoying paperwork about the product-placement efforts. People are going rabid with this stuff and-”

“ If it’s draining time and offering little profit, you are allowed to cut their budget and ask for a simplification of the planning.” Alejandra interrupted, sighing as felt the coffee starting to make effect. “If there are complains, please bring it to me and I will see that they remember the contracts they signed  _ for me _ .” 

Tootsie nodded, her smile revitalized and sporting that genuine liveliness that the CEO had learned to appreciated after so much time spent wit her.

“ By the way,” The woman continued, blinking as she glanced momentarily at the monitor of her PC. “Tomorrow I should have some normal check-up routine for the production sector planned to happen just an hour or two before lunch. Push it to  _ after _ the pause.”

The Mouse Prime looked partly surprise at this request. “New plans- and what about the Board’s meeting that is supposed to happen after lunch?” The girl asked, getting a nod from her boss.

“ We shall mix the meeting with the check-up. I think it’s time to show how productive we are being right now as to boost the morale.” She replied with a determined tone. “I think some are once more doubting my plans and, while there have been no complain, I think it’s better to prevent it from happening.”

The assistant nodded and saluted. “Understood, chief!” Her cheerfulness dragged around for another thirty minutes, the blonde leaving the office once both mugs had been emptied.

Alejandra sighed as she opened the folder containing her unfinished work for the month, humming carefully as she started compile the various reports with the newly-acquired data from the Statistics Section.

Blue eyes were looking quickly at letters and numbers, while her mind continued to partly analyze the matter at hand.

Curiosity, wonder and… interest. It’s been a while since she had personally visited Gossamer and… while she was sure that not much had changed since her last visit, she sure wouldn’t mind to rediscover the rare breath of air coming from such a calm town that she had once lived in.

_ She also wondered if her old ‘country’ clothes would still fit after last time but… t-that was a fleeting thought of course! _

* * *

The bar wasn’t bustling as last time.

I guess the early hour managed to get people either still sleeping or going to their usual jobs rather than spending time in that place. Since there were just too little to bring to the Farmer’s Market today, I was granted a few hours to go around town before lunch and beginning to work.

Diana had set some simple rules that I had no reason to disrespect, mostly because…

Who would drink alcohol this early in the morning?!

It was slightly saddening that Randal had to be around his mother to make sure she would get her medications. 

It was something that was funny to see once or twice in a while… but the woman made the instances some lengthy battles, childishly refuting the ‘need’ of having to get these medicines but… she needed to. There wasn’t an alternative to that in my mind as the Collie Prime showed me the list of medicals and… I knew some of those by name and effects.

I took a quick sip from my mug, water keeping my throat hydrated as I continued to engage in the discussion I was sharing with Minos. The man was surprised that I was allowed some free time from the work, but he seemed to accept it as soon as I mentioned my willingness to spend the time by the bar.

While this freedom was essential to further understand the world around me, I didn’t have the means to gather this information. Why? The only thing remotely close to a computer were Nanozell spirits, beings born from pure Quantum energy and based by… Nanozell itself.

I head of this from the small radio announcing this… new energy that allowed the connection of organic to machine. The concept was absurd on itself, and yet it was… reality.

The hologram-like being the mayor was always with? One of those spirits. This one in particular being responsible for the electric grid covering the entire town, which made the insane price and requirements strapped to the buying one of them being… very modest.

The local library was also very obsolete, having been around since the formation of Neo-Earth and its list of books being very limited to old tomes and… non-modern texts.

“ -By the way, did you hear about what happened in Tolas?” The Bull Prime asked with a curious glint in his red eyes. “A group of Necromancers were spotted trying to create some skeleton army. Thankfully the nearby Knight Clan provided support and the situation was resolved without any issue.”

I blinked, sipping a little from my mug as my brain wrapped around the concepts of ‘Necromancers’ and ‘Knights’. 

...What the heck is going on?!

“ Forgive me if I ask but… can you elaborate on Necromancers and… Knights?” I asked as calmly as possible, my mind failing to grasp what I just heard and… he sighed.

“ I guess humans know little about the story behind Crests.” Minos reasoned, glancing at his glass with a blank tone. “Well, I suppose I can explain it to you.”

I nodded, completely intrigued by the matter… which hinted to some magical scenario which I had not foreseen. I can understand futuristic and bullshitty technology but… magic is not something I can truly accept without a proper motivation.

“ Centuries ago, a galaxy-wide war occurred.” He narrated with a quiet tone. “At first it was limited between Primes, a civil war that was born out of greed, ambitions and… religion.”

He paused, downing completely the content of the glass. “An Empire seeking the full-control of the gifts left by the Gods, the Crests, and that wanted tyranny over my people.” He blinked, nodding as the bartender refilled his glass with new water. “A united form created by the Crest of Light herself, a faction that served to defend the weak and the innocent.”

…

“ The war… reached Earth, didn’t it?” I guessed, grimacing a little at his nod.

“ The Emperor himself wouldn’t have cared for mankind. Daring people, strong ones, but terribly weaker in technology, biology and intelligence to the Primes.” The Bull Prime replied. “Yet… one of the Crests was taught on Earth. She grew from a mere child to a dangerous warrior and… Earth was pulled in the conflict.”

Why I felt like I heard this… in some movie? Like… this sounded so much fictional and yet I knew very well that Minos wasn’t the kind of guy that delivered lies, or at least not so blatantly. The lack of confusion or any other telling signs from the nearby bartender further legitimized his words.

“ The battle turned gruesome for a time, with soldiers either dying or changing their views about… the Empire.” He stopped just a moment, a brief… nostalgia present in his glance. “The endgame was tiring, the armies all fighting at once within the humans’ homeworld and… the Emperor was beaten, at the price of the planet being condemned to death.”

“ So… Earth was lost like that?” I sighed at his following nod. “That would explain some minor confusion I had over… history.” I managed a brief smile, causing him to snort and shake his head, a tiny smile present in his own face as we both spent some time in silence.

The Prime was the one that rekindled the talking, bringing up his… phone? I didn’t expect him of all people to have one around and it looked quite expensive too.

“ Do you remember when I mentioned about my friend? The one that was allowing me to live nearby?” Minos questioned with a curious tone, making me frown and nod back.

“ I… I do remember.” I replied slowly, trying to understand why it was important.

He started to digit some of the keys and… began the call. “I mentioned about your ‘situation’ to this friend. She is trustworthy and believes your words.”

I glanced back in surprise and nodded as I waited for him to continue with the device.

He brought it close to his ear and… someone answered. There was silence from the Prime for some time and… then he sighed tiredly. 

“ Sorry. I didn’t know she was- I understand. I should have seen her doing something like… that.” Minos talked to the unknown receiver, glancing briefly my way before returning his attention back to the call.

“ Are you sure?” He asked at the unknown individual. “I understand that it was your mother that- I see. Well… I will pass the phone to him. Say hi to your mother for me then...”

I was given the device and… I put it near my ear. “Hello?”

“ _ Hello. _ ” The woman on the other side replied with a blank tone. “ _ From what I was told, I’m speaking with Matt Newcastle? _ ”

I blinked, surprised that her tone was so… calm and emotionless.

“ That’s me. Yes.” I replied curtly, feeling rather uncertain about the tone I was supposed to use while speaking with her.

“ _ Good. Then from what my mother told me, there is a slight chance that you might have been kidnapped and placed in a different continent in the span of time of… just a sole day. _ ” She paused a moment, keeping quiet just for a few seconds. “ _ Mr. Newcastle, I don’t wish to sound disrespectful but your story sounds… quite far-fetched. _ ”

“ I understand that… it sounds unbelievable but I’m quite sure that I wasn’t in Gossamer before blanking out in a bar in New York.” I nodded my head. “I know drunk people can do some… interesting stuff left unattended but-”

“ _ There are limits even to that. I understand. _ ” Yet her tone hardly ‘showed’ that. “ _ Still, I hope you understand that I will have to ask you more about… the situation. _ ”

“ Yes.” I said back, waiting a few moments as she seemed to be… moving some papers?

“ _ Your birthplace is… Florence. Correct? _ ”

“ Yes.”

“ _ And you were born to… Paolo and Carla Castlenuovo. Correct? _ ”

I flinched just a moment, turning as to not show this to Minos. “Yes.” I replied with a tighter tone.

“ _ You were a student in a University in Milan and you passed with a Master’s Degree. Correct? _ ”

“Yes. If I have to be specific, in Economy.” I pointed out, regretting instants later as I did breach the politeness and-

“ _ This is reported too, yes. _ ” 

Wait what? I was… registered? I thought that- 

“ _ Your parents died four years ago because of a car accident. Correct _ ?”

I froze, eyes widened a little before I closed them and tried to calm myself a little. A little too sudden that one…

“ Yes.” My tone spared none of the turmoil happening momentarily within my mind but soon… I was surprised by the caller once more.

“ _ Mr. Newcastle, I wish you understand that… it’s not my intention to bring back any of the bad memories. I’m just trying to help you with this situation and, if my tone might have betrayed any foul intention, I wish to apologize already. _ ”

I blinked in surprised, glancing at the device in silence and… then I sighed.

“ I… suppose you are correct. I’m sorry myself if I did sound too angry with my tone-”

“ _ It was my fault for bringing that up in such a mechanical manner. _ ” She interrupted curtly and I understood that… we were both at fault for that little predicament.

“ Look, how about I forgive you and you forgive me? We both are responsible so… we cool?” 

… ‘ We cool’? Really brain?!

**Sorry boss!**

There was once more silence and then… she sighed too. “ _ I suppose that could work. We are cool _ .”

I grinned a little, feeling that the affirmation sounded ‘fun odd’ coming from such a blank voice.

“ _ And I think we are also done for today. _ ” The young woman concluded. 

I frowned. “I thought that-”

“ _ This questioning was to verify the authenticity of the data mother got from yesterday. Now we will see if we can find any clue about what happened that specific night and… Minos will be our mutual contact. _ ” She explained, interrupting my question.

“ So… next time it will be your… mother?” I asked before the call ended, hearing a... hum on the other side?

“ _ It will depend on my mother’s schedule… but I think it’s for the best if I am the one taking care of the questioning. I don’t think she would be… keen to keep things professional or at least decent. _ ”

I blinked in surprise at that. “I see.” I replied quickly.

“ _ I will contact you once more if something surfaces and… I suppose I should be introducing myself since we will talk again. _ ” She mused calmly. “ _ My name is Naerie and… it was a pleasure talking with you, Mr. Newcastle. _ ”

“ Matt. Please call me Matt, Naerie,” I smiled a little, happy to know who I was talking to. “And it was a pleasure for me too.”

The call ended and I passed the phone back to the Bull Prime.

“ It sounds like some progress was made.” Minos commented with a small smile. “And… ‘We cool’?”

I huffed, bringing my hands close to my chest. “It was a particular situation and… can I ask you something actually?”

He nodded and I went ahead.

“ So, Naerie said that it was best for her to be the one reporting for any new info but… why not her mother?” I asked out of curiosity, only for the man to down once more his previously full glass.

“ There are things that are best understood personally and… I hope you keep blissfully unaware as it’s all about your sanity at that point.” He replied with a serious tone, making me worry a little.

“ T-That bad?” I shot back with confused wide eyes. 

“ Even worse...” He said, leaning a little on his stool as he glanced around the place. 

The bar was starting to get filled with people and noises from the various other clients started to get louder than before. It was almost time for me to return back to Las Lindas, I noticed as I turned my sight at my watch and… I thought that maybe it was good time to cut the discussion here for tomorrow.

Just as I was about to return my attention back to Minos, I felt someone poking at my shoulder.

I turned around and saw Taffy waiting there. 

She was smiling, the girl donning her work uniform and holding what looked like to be a confection holding something sweet. Her smile widened as she noticed that my eyes were aimed at the possible sweet gift.

“ Matt, I know that you were busy with Minos but… I just finished my shift, do you… want to eat outside?” She lifted a little the lid of the confection and… 

_ **It was an apple pie.** _

I glanced at back at the Bull Prime and the man sighed with a knowing smile nodding and waving as I got up, paid the bartender and followed Taffy outside the bar.

I guess I could spare some time for an apple pie.

* * *

Finding a spot that would leave them undisturbed proved to be a quick thing as they decided to stand by the unused outdoor section of he establishment. They picked the central chairs in it, the table clean enough to allow them to place the food without risking any damage to it.

Preparing the pie had been quite an easy task after having done this particular food a lot when she lived with her grandfather, just a few years before coming to this country-side piece of Gossamer.

Taffy had never stopped feeling embarrassed about causing quite a ruckus with her quick rush through the town, the day when she met the only human inhabitant and also got quite confused about his curious attitude.

She would have expected anger from the young man and… yet he had been quite understanding about the reasons behind her panicked run to reach the bar. Overly-so, if she had to be honest with herself, the Bunny Prime feeling that the behavior shown by Matt was far from… alright.

There was a hint of sadness squeezing along the lines of happiness flowing from his tone. A persisting and lingering sour taste that characterized him far from truly happy.

It was instinctive, something her grandfather had praised back when he was still alive and that she had learned to respect for its importance. It was something Taffy herself couldn’t understand for sure but… she  _ knew _ when someone was hiding something important from others.

This little talent, coupled with her affectionate manners and caring tones made it possible for her to relate with those that had some issues about themselves or others.

But while this gift had rarely failed her, the young woman had to admit that it was still strange how she could feel  _ so little  _ from Matt himself.

The human was bursting with some pent-up energy, prepared to deal with a long day of work back at the farm where he was part of. A humble job done with even humbler reasons.

She was aware of the reasons behind his refusal to deny Las Lindas’s failure, his drive was something that was as inspiring as worrying. He was growing attached to Mrs. Linda, the woman being known for her motherly ways, and if her boss was right… then the young man was going to suffer a lot very soon if the declining conditions of the farm’s owner were a reality.

And while Taffy continued to understand what was going on within Matt, the bunny’s green eyes were giving a mirthful glint back to the human as he delightfully enjoyed the first slice of the pie.

“ This is… so good, Taffy.” He glanced back, cleaning his mouth with a tissue. “Like really, you are some deity of food or-”

She blushed, shaking her head nervously. “N-None of that. It’s just that I love cooking and… that’s it.” The girl replied with a twitchy smile.

That comment came out of nowhere! She thought still feeling rather flattered by his words.

It’s been a while since she had cooked for someone and… it felt nice to know that she didn’t lost her ‘golden’ touch over the kitchen. Just as the human concluded the first slice, he stopped and glanced once more at her.

“ By the way, Taffy,” He started with an interested tone. “Why aren’t you eating this too?”

...What?

“ I made the pie for you-” She explained quietly, only to stop at his huff.

“ But the apples were from the farm I work in and… I don’t think it would be right if I was the only one eating this heavenly food.” He pressed on, getting another blush from the poor bunny.

Was there even a limit to his… capacity to compliment her food and her?

The Prime hesitated a little, glancing down on the pie she had created with tender love and genuine affection. Would it be right if… she actually wanted to try its taste?

Her hand slowly scooped one of the cut slices and… she brought it near her mouth. Her lips were graced with the sweet flavor of the apple, the crust of the cake being crispy enough to add some stability in that _ sensible _ emotion building from her happy belly.

A smile adorned her face as she was glad to know herself that her hand-made creation was really good. Her green eyes opened back to find a teasing grin on the young man’s face, her cheeks reddening just a little.

“ Is it good right?” He poked with his words, her cheeks puffing at the tone he was using. “C’mon, Taffy, it’s not like I’m trying to extort some arcane secret out of you-”

“ It’s delicious.” She replied quickly and suddenly, looking away from him. “I admit I did a good job.”

He nodded. “A really good job.” He reiterated, taking a bite out of his second slice. “But I’ve to ask this little pressing thought of mine.”

She paused mid-bite, a curious look appearing on her face. “Sure, go ahead.”

“ Taffy,” He said with a calm tone. “Why did you prepare a pie for me?” 

…

_ Raspberries! _

To think that she would end up caught like this and… so suddenly. Really, he was just that much… quick-thinking. She hummed quietly, trying to appear outwardly calm while chaos erupted from her panicking mind.

What was she supposed to reply to that?

Then, she got an idea.

“ I-I thought that it would be nice that… I made something for my new friend.” She replied with a convinced tone, smiling even as to try and get him to accept the excuse.

He merely blinked. 

“ Taffy, I’m going to be very honest with you.” Matt replied, his free hand patting on her shoulder, causing her to tense just a little. 

Was he going to tell her something about himself? Did he buy her-

“ You might be an excellent chef, but you are a terrible liar.” He stated flatly, the Bunny Prime freezing instantly at that direct comment and she… deflated.

“ ...Was it that bad?” She asked with a low tone, the human sighing.

“ I’ve seen worse but… you truly shouldn’t try to lie like that, you get caught pretty easily.” He admitted without hesitation. “But seriously, is it something that could potentially get me angry or-”

“ Possibly.” She blurted out nervously. “Maybe?”

Matt sighed and nodded. “Look, how about… I promise you that I will not be angry if you tell me already what is it?”

…

What?

“ Y-You mean that-”

“ Whatever ‘terrible’ motivation got you to make me an apple pie, I will overlook it because I promised you that I will not get angry.” He interrupted with a soft tone. “C’mon, I swear I will not be angry and-”

“ I think you are unhappy!” Taffy’s eyes widened instantly as she realized that the tension had taken over her mind and… she had let out the real issue. She sighed and decided to explain properly, seeing the confused but still calm expression on the young man’s face.

“ I-I can… see when someone is showing sadness and trying to cope with it and… I think you are that.” Her eyes squinted. “I’m sorry if I sound too condescending but I just wanted to help and-”

She flinched as he stood up from his chair, his face now blank and emotionless as…  _ he started to walk towards her. _

D-Didn’t she go overboard with it? M-Maybe he is just walking away rather than-UH!?

His arms wrapped around her neck as he pulled her head onto his chest. There wasn’t any fur so… the contact felt rather  _ smooth _ .

“ That was... the cutest and kindest reason to try to make me a pie, Taffy.” He replied with a happy tone. “Like really, if you wanted to be ‘condescending’ you would have just barged in and asked without any care about it-”

“ T-That would have been horribly mean.” She interrupted with a surprised tone and… some tears falling. “L-Like why- why would-”

The human frowned as the girl pressed her face on his shirt, sobbing loudly as she let out all that tension at once. He patted her head softly, minding her bunny ears and… surprisingly enough enjoying the softness of her pink hair.

It was fluffy and-

_ Drat _ , now he was thinking about ‘that’ fluff.

“ Taffy, what’s wrong? I don’t think I have said anything terrible or-”

“ I-It’s not that.” The Prime sniffled, looking up with her teary green eyes. “Y-You- T-That was the first time i-in a while I hugged s-someone since-” She cried a little more and Matt continued to caress her head.

“ Hey now,” He sighed calmly. “No need to cry right now, Taffy. Look, how about… we share tales?”

She tensed a little but her crying reduced as she once more glanced up. “Wh-what?”

“ I tell you the reason why I’m sad and… you tell me yours.” He explained while patting her shoulders.

“ R-Really?” She asked, getting a bright smile from him in response.

“ Yes.” He replied with a nod.

They both returned to their original seats, Taffy making use of some tissue to clean off the tears while the young man sighed and prepared to… open up to his new friend.

“ This happened… four years ago.” The human spoke, his tone soft but loud enough for the girl to listen. “I was studying to get a degree in Economics, the plan being… going for a high-level job that would have allowed me to finally help my parents with the expenses back at home. I had poured blood, sweat and soul to make sure that finally we could have all had a… good life.” 

The young man sighed, a brief pause as he stared up at the cloudy sky as he tried to keep himself detached from the painful memory. 

“ It was raining when I first received a phone call from my mother. They, my parents, were both going to deal with some situation happening to my cousin and my uncle, they would have returned later than usual and… then the rain turned in a storm.” 

His throat turned sore, his mind burning as he went through the process of remembering the exact moments the phone rang once more. 

“ Another call… this time it was the police and… the car had crashed during a curve, the impact was… enough to kill them instantly.”

His breath itched, Matt blinked as his sight blurred for a moment as tears tried and failed to form as his mind strongly resisted the strong emotion bringing him down.

“ When I graduated, I… I found myself unwilling to make use of that degree.” The human admitted with a quiet voice. “It felt wrong. It felt so horrible to even think that… that I could use something that would remind me of them, something that now was but a stupid paper and… I decided to search normal jobs as a journalist, wandering around and… never stopping for too long.”

“ O-Oh.” was the only word that could leave Taffy’s mouth, her stare now directed at the table as she knew it was her turn.

“ I-If I have to come clean… then I guess I should properly present myself.” She stated with a long sigh. “My name… my name is Ria Rudiger and… and I’ve been living with my grandfather ever since… my mother’s abuse took a more violent turn.”

Taffy drowned a sob as she gulped it down, keeping a strong face at the memories.

“ I-I’ve been trying to make things work for my… former family, making sure that they would have gotten all their needs satisfied and… it didn’t work.” 

There was a pause, then the Bunny Prime resumed with less stuttering. 

“ My grandfather… he had always been kind to me. When he learned about my mother’s latest attack, he demanded the cession of my guardianship to him promising hefty charges if his request wasn’t satisfied. Mother didn’t even flinch to hand over the legal documents and… I lived with him for several years, enjoying a… normal childhood.”

She finally lifted her stare up to the human. 

“ I loved my grandfather and he cared for me a lot as well.” The girl smiled a little. “He said that… my name was Taffy because ‘I reminded all of the good things in his life’.

Taffy blinked, glancing down to the table once more. “He passed away a few years ago. It was a natural death and… he died in his sleep, looking happy and content when he was found…”

She went silent, a sign for Matt to move as he stood out of his chair and went to pull her in another embrace. She didn’t tense like last time, rather leaning on his chest and nuzzling as she sought comfort in silence.

“ Do you want to… be accompanied back home?” 

The girl glanced up quietly with a stern green-eyed look. “Already trying to… avoid judgment?”

He blinked in surprise as he felt her arms wrapping around his chest and pulling him close.

“ My grandfather, I know he died knowing that I was going to keep up his good work, to make sure that I would never shy away from helping others.” She sighed calmly. “And you,  _ Mr _ . Newcastle, you are in dire need of help.”

“ I don’t think that-” 

“ _ Shush! _ ” The Bunny Prime interrupted with a tiny smile. “I think- no, I know that your parents would have wanted you to become the best person possible, an outstanding young man and… you are almost there.”

…

“ Matt, will you allow me… to help you?” She asked with a soft voice. “It wouldn’t be too much of a hassle, just talking and-”

“ Taffy.” The girl squeaked in surprise as her cheeks were cupped by his hands. “I will do that… but seriously, I’m going to be late if I don’t return to the farm right now. But I want to do this, really.”

He pulled out of the embrace and started to walk out but-

“ W-Wait.” The young woman exclaimed, pulling at his arm and yanking him close enough to…

**Smooch**

Plant a little kiss on his cheek. “That is for… being a kind soul yourself, Matt.” She smiled as she let him go. “But remember that you should also mind the emotional moment.” Her final huff caused the young man to chuckle as he rushed out of the bar’s outdoor section and in the path back to Las Lindas, ignoring the bright and genuine smile glowing from Taffy’s face.

She sighed, tears drying up and her mood lifting up as…

…

_ **Wait, did I just kiss him like that and- Oh, raspberry!** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "And that was... the longest chapter I've ever pulled. No really, this is the biggest and... I'm tired."
> 
> "So tired that-"
> 
> Oh? What's this?
> 
> "...What?"
> 
> There is someone there? Hello there~?
> 
> "Y-You are not meant to be there! This place is-"
> 
> Now under the 'responsible' and 'diligent' control of this lovely High Prime, sweetie~.
> 
> "N-No! I-I REFUS-" (Connection Lost)
> 
> Denied~!
> 
> Anyway, now that this partypooper of an author is gone momentarily, I guess I should introduce myself properly.
> 
> Hello my lovely minions, it is I, Ambar, and today I grace you with some good news!
> 
> Since our dear writer decided to ~Kindly~ give up his control over the Review Q&A (for the Forums it will be via replies, mind you~), I will mention a few rules over this change of leadership:
> 
> 1) No flaming! As much as fiery is nice, full fires will be extinguished with the power of love and... controlled explosions! (No, Naerie, I'm not going to do a redo of what happened back during last End of the Year.)
> 
> 2) Comment, comment and comment! (and praise me too~)
> 
> 3) I think this is pretty clear. I'm a Bear Prime and, the first one that dares to mention that 'little animal' as what I'm truly am... well, there is a nice 'resort' on the moon just for you. (No, Naerie, I'm not going to turn the resort in a space prison. I'm not that... distasteful.)


	5. Discoveries and Returns

Surprisingly enough, there was something off about that breakfast setup.

Even though it’s been just four days since I’ve been living at Las Lindas, I knew for a thing that the presence of both Diana and Randal by the kitchen was something common, if not always happening. 

The woman would be reading quietly her newspaper while asking some questions either to me or to her son, engaging in mostly simple topics about the happenings at the farm or what was going on in town.

It certainly didn’t help when the conversation would shift to a very curious interest of the lady, Minos having caught her interest from the first time he came to help me up with the crates I had to take back to the nearby settlement.

She would question some of his physical attributes, never lingering ‘too much’ over more-scandalous elements, but also inquire over his personality and the reasons that brought him to town.

This last one was kind of a routinely asked one, the woman showing palpable intrigue about the incredibly simple motivation that had the Bull Prime to come of this ‘forsaken’ bit of the Gossamer Region.

I wasn’t adept in ‘current’ Geography, but I was skeptical over this almost-rabid curiosity of ‘unraveling this mystery’. Since my knowledge of of Minos was limited to the interactions I had from our first encounter to now, I kind of failed to see why one wouldn’t want to pick this place to spend some time to ‘rest and think’.

I could only guess that the man had important connections, the strongest hints being how he managed to get a place to live in and all the expenses to pay all ‘solved’ by this enigmatic friend of his, and how this new individual he was somehow connected to, Naerie, had access over people’s information and was  **legally** capable of truly research on my strange predicament.

But while I had my fair share of questions regarding the Bull Prime, I wasn’t that much threatened by his personality and character. At least not as much as Diana was.

It wasn’t something she had said, but rather something I had seen in her eyes and face while we were chatting over this particular topic.

Randy would be silent most of the time this argument was brought up but… he would always be the one to break the conversation when things would end up turning odd for the woman. 

She would adopt this aimless expression, her green eyes blankly at the table or at the paper in her hands as if in deep thoughts.

The Collie was crafty in the derailing attempt, either pointing out her interest was more physical than else. The accusation would be met with a bright smile as her cheeks would sport a proper blush in that cheerful turnaround.

What would follow would be a brief mirthful exchange between the two, in which I would throw a minor comeback or two, preferring to let the two banter in that friendly matter… as I analyzed what had happened.

It was an odd situation that… I had trouble to pinpoint its cause. Maybe it had to do with her daughter? Or could it be her husband?

While Randy was adopted, Mora wasn’t and there had been not even a single mention of the young woman’s paternal parent. It was a big possibility, but I held myself from asking as I knew that the ill effects it could cause to ask about this so suddenly wouldn’t… be pleasant to deal with.

My distracted mind finally snapped back to reality as a particularly-spicy slice of bacon entered my mouth. My hand quickly went to the nearby glass of water and I took a sip or two from it.

Sighing, I noticed that Randal was now cleaning his own plate and Diana’s share of the breakfast had yet to be touched. I frowned and tried to recollect if the older Prime had come to even greet that morning but...

I’ve yet to see her around the house.

“ Randy?” I called out quietly, the Collie pausing just a moment as he cleaned his fork and knife, only an eye directed at me. “Where is Mrs. Linda?” My question was met with a sheepish smile before the young man returned to the chore.

“ Oh? Mom had to go to the bathroom.” He hummed calmly. “I guess she decided to have a bath.” He finished, his attention now fully taken by his plate.

I stood up from my seat. “Her breakfast is going to get cold. I can pass and tell her that.” I suggested, getting only a distracted nod from the Collie.

Blinking, I walked out of the kitchen and started to make my way to the door that led to the bathroom. My ears caught water running, but it wasn’t… the bathtub. 

I paused, eyes narrowing at the door as I pressed my ear over the surface and then knocked. “Mrs. Linda, breakfast is turn-ing _ cold? _ ”

The door opened slightly as I softly knocked at it, hand retreating as my eyes widened at the water rushing out of the room. Without hesitation, I opened the door with a worried expression as I did recognize that the noise really wasn’t from the tub, but from the sink.

It was over-flowing, water slowly dripping from its edges. Then my sight turned at Diana and panic exploded outwardly at what I was looking at.

The woman was crouching with her back pressing on the nearest wall, trembling in complete pain as she held her right arm close with her left one. Her teeth were gritting, holding back any noise trying to dignify the excruciating torture she looked to be in that moment.

I moved before speaking, but my lips managed to call erratically for Randy as I rushed to help the Cow Prime. I was hesitant in getting her up, unsure where exactly the pain was coming from and then… I noticed the strange marks in her right arm.

At first sight, I would have taken these as simple tattoos, something quite odd to find the woman to have, but then I noticed that those were… too prominent to be a product of mere ink.

My hand went to unroll the partially moved sleeve and… I touched the furred skin. I went still as I felt a sudden wave of cold grip at my chest, my entire body suddenly having trouble to actually move from that pose.

Green eyes widened a little more as her sight locked onto my frame, Diana seemingly noticing my presence now and she slowly calmed down, her trembling starting to subside and… she fell forward.

I was quick enough to catch her before she could have dragged us both down but I soon realized that I felt a little winded from what had just happened. My breathing was a little labored but I still managed to get her up from the floor while helping her to stand up.

I heard a quick gasp as Randal had finally arrived, the Collie went to quickly help me up with his mother, going to one of her sides as I went to another, pulling her arms over our necks as we slowly took her back to her bedroom. 

Diana was still unconscious as she was put back in her bed, incredibly tired from the look plastered on her face. And while I was giving my greatest effort to keep the utter confusion running in my mind, I couldn’t help but blink quickly and still appear a little tense.

The marks- Why those reacted like… that?!

Before I could think more about it, maybe as I slowly started to relax once again, I felt a hand patting my shoulder and I glanced at the uneasy look on Randal’s face.

“ I think we need to talk about this...” He said with a nervous tone.

Moments later, we were sitting by the kitchen’s table once more, the Collie looking quite somber for whatever revelation he was trying to give me. I didn’t pressure him to talk, knowing that it had to do with what had just happened.

And since it was his mother we were going to talk about, I decided to let him have the time to think before explaining.

He sighed calmly and nodded to himself. “There is a reason why I’ve decided to not tell you what was mom’s sickness.” The Prime began, his tone quite soft and slow. “Her conditions could be seen as a taboo for our culture, the Prime culture.” He paused, glancing at the table as he tapped once the edge.

“ The marks?” I pointed out with some hesitation, making him tense just a little.

“ A telling sign of her unique situation.” The young man answered. “The traits of a failed attempt to be turned in a  _ Narakhan _ .” Another pause, more confusion for me as I didn’t recognized the term used.

Narakhan, why did it feel so… wrong to even think about it?

“ Mom never said when did this happen, nor who tried to turn her into  _ that _ , but she has been suffering for the negative effects of the failed attempt for a long time now.” Randal admitted with a frown. “The symptoms aren’t a novelty for these cases but… there isn’t a clear cure to it.”

...What?

“ No cure-”

“ People either recover from it with time or by sheer luck.” The Collie interjected, almost hissing at the interruption. “But the chances are good only when treatment is started by the time the first signs are noticed and… mom’s treatment has been going just for six months now.”

He stopped to talk, possibly to give me time to fully understand his words.

The illness was… unexpectedly worse than I had thought it to be early on. Certainly not something from ‘my’ world, but possibly one of the worst I’ve heard about.

“ Randy-”

“ The moment I learned about mom’s conditions, I was there to help where I could.” He pointed at the sink behind him. “House chores, working at the farm and even keeping a cautious watch over mom’s situation.” 

He blinked, eyes half-closed. “I’ve even tried to call Mora, tried to at least get some more help but- I couldn’t find her anywhere. Always moving, hardly stopping more than once and she has my phone number blocked.” His voice cracking a little and sighed at the plight Randal had to endure.

I had expected some stress by the incredibly tiring situation, but to this extent? I admit I should have given a little more attention to it. He was giving his hardest to make sure that everything was fine but…

**Nothing was going to be fine forever.**

Yet I couldn’t certainly let this predicament continue now that I was aware of it and… I nodded. 

“ Then I guess you will have to tell me how to help you.” I replied quietly, my words trailing a little in the silence as his brown eyes widened just a little at the suggestion and he started to shake his head negatively. 

“ No- Look Matt, I know that you want to help and all but-” He tried to deter me but I was already interrupting him with a sigh.

“ I know that you don’t want to cause problems to me, Randy, but I can’t certainly let you deal with the burden alone.” I said with a stern tone. “I understand your politeness, but I can’t just have you deal with this without some proper help. Once I’m back from the Market, I will help you around before I have to do my job for the farm.”

There was some visible hesitation at my determined words, but the Collie was quick to concede and… he asked just for some ‘minor help’ rather than a full-fledged equal distribution of chores for this case.

I would have asked for more burden, which was quite contrasting with my need to rest, but doing this for Diana was but just a little sacrifice.

With that situation settled and with more questions to ask to Minos himself, I went to prepare myself for my usual walk to work with the Bull Prime.

In the mean time, Randy spent half of his time keeping an eye on the still-sleeping woman while the rest was devolved in the remaining chores around the house.

Closing the entrance door behind me, I greeted the ever-punctual Minos with a nod as we both walked towards the small carriage, ready to start another day at the Farmer’s Market.

* * *

If there is something that Minos always found quite interesting about humans, it was their capacity to display a vast array of emotions in a single expression oh their faces.

In fact, it was something that was quietly entertaining him as both he and Matt walked to the local town from the farm where he was currently working for. 

The young man was showing confusion, sadness and minor distress, something that was born from something that had happened prior to their meet-up.

It wasn’t just in the way he was looking at the road in front of them, but also in the slow but good pace he had taken, the way his shoulders were sagging a little lower than usual and how he was distracted from the path forward multiple times.

Matt was still attentive enough to give his own to pull the carriage, maybe a solid 30% of their combined efforts, and that was more than enough for him to not call out this strange behavior.

The human was odd, very trustworthy but also genuine in his ways. Something that made Minos glad to have him actually found someone like the young man.

Very polite, but also informal when possible with those he deemed his friends, the Prime was more interested on him because of his personality rather than because of his unique situation.

The circumstances that led him to suddenly appear in Gossamer were indeed worth of looking for and with Naerie taking the lead for the investigation, a speedy process was the only conclusion to this curious situation.

Ambar’s daughter was quite the hard-worker, having been responsible for a majority of improvements to her mother’s flawed designs. 

Even the High Prime was keen to leave mistakes around, mostly willingly as she knew that someone capable, like her eldest child, was going to fix masterfully.

Still, the former member of the Empire had a simpler reason to stick around the normal and incredibly calm individual and that was his overall social attractiveness.

Not of the romantic kind, but rather connected to the fact that the young man was unconsciously a magnet for lonely people like the Bull Prime. 

Minos being the first and Taffy, the waitress at the bar, being the latest.

It wouldn’t be shocking to him that more people were going to tag along this quiet train, just for the sake of escaping the endless madness happening all around them.

A calm sea within a turbulent ocean of trouble, developments and (un)lucky happenings. 

Yet it wasn’t that much of a surprise to see why they were both hovering around him. He was ‘unique’ enough to stand out from the usual crowd of people in the town, but also relatively quieter and more soothing than anyone there.

Matt was relatively harmless, very perceptive and a good talker to have around just for the sake of living an entertaining but safe day.

There was no particular reason to be worried of being pulled in some crazy situation with him around, differently from his previous experiences with Geecku, Ambar, Kayin and the other members of the former crew.

Not that he disliked having them around but… even Minos had some limits to the insanity that ensued with the ‘fun’ bunch.

Only Grace proved to be the only one able to give him that kind peace, to a degree far higher than anything Matt could provide to him.

The woman had been his light to shed some of the confusing bits of Neo-Earth, but now that she had a family it wouldn’t have been proper to disturb her for little things.

_ It’s been three weeks now since she had last spoken to her. _

The kind woman was now married and dealing with her growing children, two lovely daughters that were going through two different yet similar path of lives and it was high time for someone like him to stop to pester her around with his own insecurities over the world’s unknown elements.

That’s possibly why Matt managed to get him interested in his conversations. It was just so peaceful and lacking the slightly annoying quirks of some of his friends.

It was a little breath of air away from the craziness he was so accustomed too.

But much to his blissful ignorance, that calm was going to abruptly end moments later as the young man was going to ask him quite the… explanation from him.

“ Minos, can I ask you something about… what you told me yesterday?” The human suddenly asked, his tone being rather… nervous. “It’s a term I caught in a book I was reading this morning and… it didn’t expand much on the book itself. I think it’s kind of a bad word but-”

“ Just ask.” Minos sighed calmly, a tiny smile on his face. There wasn’t much that could seriously get him that scandalized and even then he-

“ What are… Narakhans?” Matt’s tone was quiet, yet Minos could discern some minor nervousness about it. And for good reasons.

The Prime flinched at the unpleasantly familiar term, having been aware of it for most of his first two decades of his life. How could he forget about a problem still hurting the world even now?

_ It was good enough for him that Gossamer was void of scums of that kind. _

He sighed. “The still-present scourge of humanity and the Prime race.” His voice was sporting just a glimpse of uneasiness, unwilling to give up too much information about this specific issue because of the risk of offering hints about his real nature. “Descendants of the last loyal servants of the Emperor, still living with the hope of bringing him and his rule back.” 

His mind was bringing up some unwanted memories of his past and thus he cut the explanation short.

The human blinked, a confused look now dominating on his face. “But how does one discern a Narakhan from a Prime?” 

_ The maniacal sense of devotion and faith to the Emperor? A penchant to commit the most heinous crimes for the sake of a laugh? _

“ Black marks.” The Bull Prime replied quickly. “The natural evidence of their corruption by the taint of those defying the Gods’ gifts and turning to the darkest depths of their souls.”

He could still remember when he would lead squadrons of loyalists against the Knights, against the Crests. 

_ He could still remember being butchered by Ambar in their first encounter. _

Minos hoped that this topic was going to be shelved now, the edge in his voice hopefully being more than enough to discourage any-

“ So they are just born from other Narakhans? Shouldn’t they have died out if their community was limited to that-”

“ Matt.” The Bull interrupted with a stern tone. “Explaining this already requires an immense amount of trust and effort, this isn’t a pleasant subject.” His red eyes stared strongly at the young man. “Do you wish to voice the real reason behind this sudden interest of yours?”

At the fierce request, the human tensed a little, his eyes turning away for a brief moment before giving a wide-eyed surprised look. “W-What?” He asked weakly, trying to appear clueless to the fact he hadn’t hidden that well the intrigue over the Narakhan’s culture.

“ You aren’t the kind of person that linger over these topics.” Minos pressed on. “There is something that urges you to know more about this and… Matt, I hope this isn’t anything dangerous-”

“ N-No, no.” He shook his head furiously, a panicked look on his face. “It’s just that...”

A sigh left his lips and he nodded. “This is… something I wish that stays quiet. So if I tell you-”

“ Nobody will know.” Minos assured quickly. “I can promise you that.”

Another nod and then Matt started to explain about the conditions afflicting the owner of Las Lindas. 

At first the Prime was surprised to learn about the fact that the sickness the woman was suffering from was ‘that’ one, especially since he knew full-well that botching that dangerous transformation was an incredibly rare feat. 

In the past it was easy to ignore those things, people hardly trying to turn to the Narakhan, especially with how extreme their culture was back then… 

B ut now the process was more common than before the end of the Empire as the newer generations had taken a more moderate approach about everything, especially the integration of ‘newcomers’.

Yet there was something off about the story he had just listened to… and about lack of clues regarding the possible culprit behind the sickness.

“ I’m sorry to ask but are you aware of the main requirement that a turning needs to truly happen?” Minos inquired calmly, the town was nearby and thus it was good to conclude this conversation quickly.

“ That you need to be a… Prime?” The young man guessed, getting a ‘no’ from the Bull Prime much to his annoyance. “Okay no, I don’t.”

“ The process requires that the unturned partner… to be willing to take part in the attempt.” The man replied calmly. “Their souls need to be laid willingly for the taint to take over. Will and determination for the process to happen are a must for this to truly happen.”

He almost tripped at hearing this, his eyes shooting wide open at the discovery and… then he sobered up quite swiftly.

“ I-Is that so?”

Oddly even.

“ Yes.” Minos confirmed quietly. “But I advise you to keep silent about this with the other people in town. Even Taffy.” He specified the Bunny Prime, unsure that the girl knew or not about that specific and ‘antiquate’ subject of their culture.

The human nodded slowly and soon they were walking through the settlement’s gates. And while his curiosity had been satisfied, the Bull Prime knew that the young man was now going to deal with the newly-acquired knowledge, to struggle and doubt about what he had until now.

But knowing that Matt wasn’t the usual man was more than enough to put Minos at ease. If there was something that the human was good at, was fighting himself while searching for  _ **his truth** _ .

Still, with this little opening to the day, there was something that was sure to the Bull Prime now.

_ **This wasn’t going to be the usual day, it would seem.** _

* * *

This wasn’t-

This couldn’t be possible. Maybe she had been hypnotized to willingly lay out her soul? Maybe there is some spell that could force people to compliance and do this but-

What if there wasn’t truly an excuse? What if Diana had tried to be turned in a Narakhan and… she couldn’t for some reason?

It was surreal to even consider the woman willingly go and become one of the most hated aspects of Prime society. She was just too genuinely kind to be truly capable of this and… there has to be another reason!

My inner struggles were safely kept away from Minos as we started to prepare the stand with the products from the farm. My worries lingered for a long time, even while I focused on selling the vegetables I still felt that nagging sensation of something missing from the context.

Something important, something that… could really help me with proving her innocence before my eyes-

But what if she wasn’t? What if she was ‘guilty’?

Would it truly matter if sometime in the past she tried to do that horrible- actually, was it truly terrible?

My knowledge regarding this taboo part of their culture was incredibly biased, because no matter how impartial Minos could sound he couldn’t be that much experienced about those to the extended degree I required, and without a more objective point of view I was left to deal with some troubled judging before he returned back home.

Would she be angry if she learned that now he knew too? Would she yell, would she scowl, or would she just shrug at it?

The last one oddly enough felt fitting for the woman he knew but… did he knew her that well?

Randal trusted her, she was his mother, but what was she to me?

_ **Your savior?** _

I felt my brain reply with sass and with a reasonable motivation too. She did take me inside her house, gave me a place where to sleep, to eat and… where to live.

If Diana had truly wanted to cause harm to me, she would have had enough opportunities to do so. In fact, these examples actually ended in the best outcome for me… always.

She actually lost some of her peace by ‘hiring’ me to her farm and I knew that such a decision was driven by heart rather than any shady plot-twist around the corner.

The woman looked just too tired to be really hiding something about her mannerism and slowly I was seeing how the Bull Prime’s words were influencing me in the worst way possible. Not that Minos was meaning it, but I was seriously letting his depiction of the ‘clan’ get to my head a little too easily.

Diana wasn’t a Narakhan, thus that shouldn’t be a problem to begin with. She was a lovely lady that had the heart to pick someone like me, a complete stranger, and give me a chance at life.

It felt so… impossible, yet I was granted another try at things. Was it the best? No, but this was the real world, not certainly a Game where people could just do whatever they wished to do at a mere snap of fingers.

And having issues about trust? The only problem was that she was giving me too much of hers, if I have to be honest. Almost five days here and I was like some worker that had been here for decades and… I felt like it was just so unbelievable.

Any secondary purposes behind her kindness? Nothing that could work better than blackmailing me.

She knew what my real name was and she had been very secretive about it around Randy. Nobody in town considered me with my original name, those that knew me addressing me with just ‘Matt’ or ‘Mr. Newcastle’, thus the woman didn’t tell any of her ‘friends’ there about my situation, or at least to that extent.

It took me twenty minutes or so to finally give my fullest attention to the shop process and… I managed to avoid getting entangled by those thoughts while at the job.

People were buying, the crowd of clients was a little bigger than last time and thus the work-day ended an hour earlier than last time. 

Everyone was satisfied, the money gained was going to help a lot in the careful budget of rebuilding the farm and fix the debts still lurking from the bank’s deep pockets.

Minos had been quite happy to accept my attempt to divert the topic to the usual calm and normal series of things that had been happening around town and I was mostly out from my inner conflict… when I tall woman making her way to the stand.

She was a Cow Prime, but differently from Diana her fur was white with black spots. Even some of her locks were black compared to the rest made by white hair. She was wearing a sleeveless pink shirt that showed part of her cleavage, not too much thankfully, and a pair of yellow short pants.

A pair of sunglasses rested on her head as she went to greet us both. “Good morning and… I see that you are already closing up?” She paused, blue eyes noticing that we were indeed starting to pack the stand up.

“ Yes, today we sold everything quickly and we are closing because… we don’t have anything else to offer.” I replied with a small smile. “I’m sorry if you-”

“ I am not here to buy anything.” She admitted with a sigh. “Only trying to see how this little stand was faring today and… I see it’s doing more than two days ago.” She commented with a strange tone.

“ Thanks. It’s mostly the good quality of the products and the trust of the clients to those rising.” I hummed quietly while picking two more crates and setting them on the chariot.

The woman blinked and then stared quietly… at me? 

She leaned on the stand, her head tilting a little on the side as a small playful smile was on her face.

“ It has to be quite difficult to go at this pace.” Her voice was soothing. “I can only guess that you work really hard to bring those results in.” Her eyes narrowed lovingly at me and… I sighed.

“ Look, I know what you are trying to do and… I’m not that kind of guy.” I interrupted with a flat tone, making her unbalance a little and almost lose her focus on standing by the wooden structure. Her eyes widened but I continued before she could speak back at this.

“ I don’t know for whom you work for, but I can tell you that I have to decline whatever offer you have.” I said quickly. “I don’t wish to lift any senseless hopes as I’ve obligations to-”

“ Diana Linda.” She interjected calmly, then she sighed. “Yes, I know about your commitment to Las Lindas, Mr. Newcastle, but I wish to address the fact that I’m not here to recruit you… rather I wish to know what kind of person you are.” The woman revealed with a small smile.

I blinked. “What?”

“ Your Curriculum Vitae can offer just so much about your true self, Matt.” The woman continued, her tone shifting to something a little… serious, business-like. “So I decided to see by myself if there was truly a ‘moral obligation’ you hold toward Las Lindas.” She sighed at the end of the explanation, her hand stretching towards me.

“ I think I should properly introduce myself. I’m Alejandra Coldthorn, CEO of Alexandria Dairy.” She greeted again and… I recognized the name from the last few days.

“ _ **I’m Tootsie Roswell and I’m a close confident to the current CEO, Alejandra Coldthorne.”** _

I blinked, my hand slowly going to shake hers. “Matt Newcastle- and you are Tootsie’s Boss?”

The blunt question was more than enough to have her composure stumble once more, this time an annoyed sigh was followed by some words. “She did present me too, didn’t she?”

From her tone and her groan, I knew that this was a common situation with the blonde Mouse Prime.

“ Only as a mean to better recruit me.” I admitted with a nod. “But she was fairly convincing-”

“ But her efforts were wasted if you are truly inclined to continue to work for Las Lindas.” She pointed out with a sigh. “She can be very persuasive but-”

“ She didn’t go overboard, if that’s what you are alluding at, Ms. Coldthorn.” I interjected with a smile. “Still, I don’t understand why you of all people would come here and-”

“ Just wanted to visit Gossamer.” Her tone was tense as she interrupted me while I was making that question. “This place… I grew up here for most of my childhood.” She assumed a nostalgic edge to her words. “It’s impressive how things hardly change here compared to the urban life.”

“ It’s part of its charm.” I replied happily, a smile plastered on my face. “I guess that there isn’t any of the quick pace that only cities know about.”

Alejandra nodded. “I can see that...” 

“ Still, if you want, I can give you a tour of-” I tried to offer but I was interrupted by her.

“ N-No.” The woman waved dismissively, her blush reappearing. “I’m merely visiting. I will back to work by lunch and… thank you for offering.” A small smile appeared on her face as she nodded.

“ You are welcome.” I said cheerfully while placing the last of the empty crates on the chariot. “Is there anything else or…?”

She sighed again then she sported a strangely sad look. “I know I shouldn’t ask this so suddenly but… is it true that Diana is sick?” There was some minor concern in her voice and… I felt my face clenching at the reminder of the conversation I had a few hours ago. “I understand if you don’t wish to say-”

“ She is.” I nodded quietly, interrupting her. “She has been for months now.” I concluded with a simple sigh.

There was some sad silence from the Cow Prime and… then Alejandra nodded back with a soft pace. “I see...” She replied, her eyes wandering to the small envelope that was now in her hold. “If it isn’t too much to ask, could you please give this to her? It’s… important.” She held the paper towards me and I looked at the letter. 

Why I feel like I’m forgetting something… something important about her of all people.

Slowly, I nodded as I went to pick it up from her hands, mind still struggling to understand the sudden sensation. “I will make sure she reads it...” She smiled and nodded.

“ Then I bid you a good day, Mr. Newcastle-”

“ Matt.” I interjected with a smile. “You may call me Matt.”

She blinked, her smile widening a little. “Alej.” The woman said in response. “And I bid you a proper good day, Matt.”

“ Likewise, Alej.” I replied mirthfully and saw her slowly retreat away from the stand.

It was like a snap, but the moment she turned around and started to walk away… I remembered why she looked this familiar.

The pictures back at Las Lindas, the one with Randal, Mora, Diana and-

“ W-Wait!” I lifted my hand towards her, but she seemed to ignore me because of the noise coming from the still-active crowd. “Y-You are Patches-”

The woman stopped instantly as I said that nickname, her entire body going still and tense as her head turned to grace me with a wide-eyed look of surprise. 

“ Aren’t you?” I ended the question, waiting for her to answer and… then she merely turned around returned back on her path, but not before giving a little almost-unheard reply.

“ **I was.”**

The two words left me stumped as the woman disappeared from my sight and… I blinked while turning to Minos.

“ Quite the interesting individual.” The Bull Prime commented. “Pa-”

“ No.” I interrupted him, causing him to lift a surprise eyebrow. “That is sadly not a story for me to tells. And please, don’t use that nickname with her.” I explained, gaining a slow and unsure nod from him.

There was any further interest in continuing that little topic, but soon my mind was forced back to deal with the fact I… had mistrusted so easily Diana.

The woman was far too kind for… someone like me.

I was glad that I found Randy and her…

I blinked, turning to stare at Minos and then… smiled. “Before we got back, I have something to buy… nothing too pricey.”

My words got a frown from him and… we spent the next ten minutes in town trying to find a flower shop and then I found what I was looking for.

I returned to Las Lindas with a bouquet of Heather flowers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> "And it's here! "
> 
> It was about time, young man. I had to intrude in quite a lot of your stories-
> 
> "WITHOUT MY OWN PERMISSION!"
> 
> ...There is no need to shriek like a madman and... yep, it's time for some proper thinking over the chapter above. Can we start with the flowers?
> 
> "Heather (or Lavender) represents loneliness and solitude, but also admiration of a quality or more. Gratitude is mostly recurring for those flowers."
> 
> Truly a curious decision, but what about the little insight over the Narakhan. Are you planning to go further from the little, lovely farm?
> 
> "There are plans of expansion for a sequel. Nothing biggie... just something about the Cancelled Bonus Comics."
> 
> Oh? Which one in particular?
> 
> "I've found Learning Curves... maybe also go for a minor pre-Knighthood scenario too."
> 
> Quite the interesting choices and while I would lecture you a little more about your laziness at uploading this delightful chapter and your 'uncultured' tones when talking to me, I think it's time to end this chapter here. Goodbye and see you next time, lovelies~


	6. A step forward, a thought back

Mistakes were made and things weren’t certainly going easy for Miles Lionheart as he prepared himself for the next step after his exodus from Prism University.

The shaking train-carriage kept him from finding rest in the last few hours and so he decided to spend this time trying to summarize, strategize and plan the following approach for how things had escalated to the point of seeing him running away.

Three years filled with desperate attempts of him trying to get some recognition or even developing some ambition out of the different opportunities offered by the prestigious establishment that was Prism Uni were all slammed back by something that was painfully true.

Lack of interest, an absurd lack of willingness to master any of the few things he had learned to either like or love in the last three years of studies, his whole self unable to keep up with the strong personalities of his generation, many of them actually being around him as he struggled with his own life.

People like Davin, Toby and Shin, which had found their own state of balance in their own ways, or like Tiggs, Vixy and Ann, which learned in due time how to properly exist in the universe, were prime examples of those that had conquered fame this early in their lives with (mostly) rightful ways and attitudes. 

Even _ unpleasant  _ people like Angel and Tiare had their own objectives defined and ready to be conquered with sufficient hard-work and willpower with how things were going for them.

He sighed for the umpteenth time, his mind wandering further to the very individual he had to have hurt the worst with this shitty decision of his. 

He was conscious that _ everyone _ was suffering because of his selfish mindset as of now and yet, she was standing on top and giving him the worst look possible. 

Of all the people that Miles was sure that had tried to keep him from straying from the ‘shining future’ lying before him, it was Hope. 

An aspiring singer and someone that was attracted madly by the little runt that was Shin Aryoko, the girl didn’t have any reason to notice him right by the first day, and yet she did and shared with him part of her life.

It had been inspiring, her dreamy tones motivational and pushing him to try his hardest to qualify in something, all attempts resulting in out-right failures and further angsty directed at himself.

She had cared even when she hadn’t shown any malicious interest about using him, genuinely giving him true faith in himself and steering him in the right directions at the right time.

Sadly, she had been completely unaware of how much of a terrible person she was harboring so kindly and gently, and possibly she was hurting because of it. The moment he had stepped inside the train, every single moment with her flashed in a dual trail of tears.

Miles had been glad that he had been wearing a hoodie at the time, there was just so much he had to let out without anyone seeing. Without anyone preaching him about his behavior.

Hope had been there for him since day one, she had been his first friend and his closest confidant. She had been there in his best and worst moments, bringing with her the  _ literal hope  _ he had been lacking during those trying events. 

Even now, after his ungraceful fall that led him to leave Prism University, her presence was tangible by the warming number of attempted calls his phone had registered. 

Desperation was palpable to his numb mind, yet he still refused to answer. Even the little runt had to go out of his nerdy ways to get in contact with him, four were the failed calls displayed by the device and… the others did try too.

Even Tiggs, the girl which he had shared that very singular night… that had brought him to breakup from his declining lifestyle. Gone was the old Miles that would always whine over his inability of conquering his own place in a legitimate manner, now a more selfish and simplistic Cat Prime was walking with his name and resemblance.

‘ ...Man, that did sound quite cheesy, now that I think about it.’

He sighed as he walked outside the small train that had taken him the further place from where he had just escaped. This little forsaken town in the countryside region of Gossamer was predictably the best hiding spot where he planned to keep a discreet silence over what had just happened.

Call it being a coward or an ungrateful moron, but Miles wasn’t truly  _ feeling _ the strength of being butchered by heart-stricken words as of now for he knew that even a single hint of a familiar voice would have been enough to have him collapsing on himself and let go of his current state of composure.

‘ Reborn’ was his new gig, but he was still too frail to truly venture about the possibility of sharing some meaningful words with his former friends after what had happened mere days ago. He expected anger, distrust and utter hatred from them because of how he had dealt with his own problems.

Tiggs was surely hating herself for complying at her need, probably calling herself the real cause to blame for his departure. Untrue, but not totally wrong, Miles had to admit in a bitter mood.

The Cat Prime had gone far with this life-changing choice, there was no doubt about it and… he felt sorry about how shit had hit the fan. 

But to risk an apology now that he was away from the painful topic? He couldn’t help himself but appreciate the fact that he was granted a less-expensive life in this village in the middle of nowhere.

He could remember hearing the English Literature teacher mentioning about this very place, having spent numerous summers here to experience the simple life of a farmer, growing to love this town and its inhabitant. 

Yet Miles wasn’t here to be a manual worker for some old farmer, he wasn’t searching for labor or stress for some little gain. 

He wanted a place where to rest until the heat had simmered down enough for him to re-approach the ‘gang’ without any major hard-feelings. Which would be a terribly long time given how some knew how to cultivate a grudge for years at best.

A hum roared quietly from his throat to his closed lips as he ventured in the partially-crowded roads of the town, golden eyes blinking left and right as he basked at the lack of any people from the ‘big city’. 

He was the only one coming from Prism, he guessed silently and happily. Still, he knew he couldn’t linger much around this simple district and any deep exploration would end up being planned only much later as he had yet to settle down his things in his ‘new home’.

The dusty gym  bag currently by his side was being used to keep everything he had claimed as his own after coming at the University. A handful of stuff that was either clothes, pictures of  _ lovely ladies _ , or some books he deemed worth to ‘save’ from the ‘eternal exodus’ of his. A tiny smirk formed in his face.

His crappy sense of humor was almost there to torment those that dared to irk him if not by just a little. One can wonder how much he would last before getting his own butt kicked by some annoyed girl or some jealous guy.

Miles yawned as he found the little flat that was supposed to shelter him until propitious times and… it was a shack. A rundown shack that hadn’t seen life for decades from the state of things. It was just at the edge of the town, far enough for his loud snort to not be caught by any of the country-folks wandering around.

He had thought that with the current state of money (or what was left of his meek pocket money) he could have gotten some interesting deal out of the ‘kind’ and ‘respectful’ gentleman that had offered him that horrible place.

Knowing that he had been deceived and given the worst affair of his life (second only to the mess he had caused back at Prism), he decided to do something he had avoided for some time now.

Entering through the broken down door and pacing towards what was supposed to be his living/bed/bathroom, he fell on the simple mattress on sight, his noise flaring at the disgusting stench coming from it, but he continued with his planned reaction.

The following loud yell that lasted for more than a dozen of seconds was muffled by the fabric of the moldy thing and Miles got up from it with a tired expression. Not one that required sleep, but rather one that had him needed some little action before truly going for a power-nap.

He was aching for some trouble, maybe something to get him out from his gloomy state. He truly wanted to get shitfaced this early in the morning, like he really wanted to see some star before resting.

_ Anything that could get him to stop about Hope would work for him. _

There was a pub in the town, he discovered with a gleeful mind and, as he entered inside, he was greeted with the presence of some people already enjoying the happiness that only alcohol could offer.

He didn’t waste any time in getting in one of the stools by the counter and cheerfully asked for a light-beer. The bartender lifted a surprised frown, possibly shocked by the fact someone as young as he was had ordered beer this early in the day and… he still complied.

The beverage was quickly dispensed and he took just a sip. It was enough to get him mind running smoother as the stinging feeling woke him up from his early discomfort. He felt more-focused, more  _ interested _ on things.

‘ Yep, this is doing the trick.’

Another sip, this time longer than the first one, and the mug felt warmer to his touch. Miles blinked on the side, golden eyes turning to stare at the fellow men beside him and… he frowned.

Instead of a Prime, the closest guy to him was actually a human close to his age. The Cat blinked again, this time surprising evident in his face as he tilted closer to see if he wasn’t seeing things with how little fur was visible on the dude’s face.

The man frowned in return and narrowed his eyes at the Prime. 

“ Is something wrong?” He asked with a calm but cautious tone, causing the young man in his quick look at the realization he had been ‘caught in action’. 

“ Just surprised to see a human here of all places,” Miles replied with an interested tone. “Are you perhaps a tourist?”

The question might have sounded impertinent, but the alcohol was lessening his already-low inhibitions and the bluntness was set free for him to use.

The man frown deepened, but he shook his head. “Not a tourist. Just been there for less than a week.”

Oh? A fellow new kid? What are the odds!

“ Well, I’m new too,” The Cat admitted with a small smile. “Name’s Miles. What yours?”

“ Matt,” He replied curtly, his frown softening. “Nice to meet you, Miles.”

He extended his gloved hand, causing the former student to return the action and shake it.

“ Likewise, Matt.” 

There was some silence yet now that he had his beer and some peace, Miles’ own attention span was taken by that unique sight.

Humans weren’t that much of a common sight even in Prism, but to see one living here of all places was enough to bring up the fact that there had to have been a major reason for Matt to have ventured this deep.

Could it be an attempt to avoid the urban restrictions of jobs for fellow humans or was it some shady business similar to the Cat’s plight?

Difficult to discern at first thought and words. Thus, his curiosity spurned him to speak more, to ask for ‘more clues’.

“ Sounds like you have learned lots from a few days,” He pointed out with a cheeky tone. “I wonder, do you have a work or something here or-”

“ I work at a farm.” Matt interrupted quietly. “Just a quiet place where I do stuff mostly alone.”

A lone worker at a farm? Now the mystery was turning juicier than planned. Why would an owner hire just a worker for the tasks and maintenance of a place as big and complex as a farm?

“ That’s tough!” Miles said after another long sip at his cup. “I bet the work is brutal.”

A little snort left the human’s lips. “Only a little. It’s manageable.” He commented with a somewhat-happier tone.

It was kind of odd to see someone that had to endure a daily dose of labor look this much… happy with what he had. His mood reminded him of the others at Prism Uni, how they seemed so satisfied with that they had obtained over time… but it was also different.

Many of those examples had some qualities that took them to their celebrity and popularity, but Matt wasn’t showing  _ any of that _ .

No quality other than strength and endurance could genuinely help with the hard work that was the one of manual laborer, the strains of each task being unbelievably complicated and quite difficult to process through in practice.

He was far too average to look at and he even wasn’t tall and bulky enough for the Cat to believe that the human was the sole worker to a farm around here. It was far too incredible to just accept the statement he had just heard.

“ You mean that you do this all alone?” Miles pressed on, there sure was something off about this. Something he was missing-

“ I do the work at the farm mostly alone,” Matt explained with a sigh. “The son of the owner helps me with some of the minor things like replanting the minor plants and providing water all around.” 

“ So it’s two workers-”

“ He is mostly helping his mother as she is most of the time bed-ridden,” The interjection brought a brief halt to his interest, the fact he had gone towards a rather sore topic for the human was evident at the tense tone and little flinch he had on his face. 

“ But I do think I have a co-worker in a friend of mine that should be here anytime now-”

“ Good morning.”

The sudden loud but calm greeting was enough to not only interrupt the farm-worker but also get Miles to turn his attention at the entrance were…  _ a fairly tall and strong Bull Prime was approaching from. _

‘ Oh Cripes!’

“ Oh Minos, good morning to you too,” Matt smiled as he stood up to look at the incoming tall man. “And let me introduce you to Miles here.”

The Cat gulped nervously and sported the calmest composure possible, which was a panicking look mixed with a scared one. “H-Hello.”

“ Hello to you too, Miles,” Minos replied back with a polite edge. “And I suppose you are new to town, aren’t you?”

“ Y-Yes. Just arrived today and… this is a nice place, isn’t it?” Miles had to calm down before causing a mess, but his brain was doing the complete opposite and chit-chatting more than he wanted to.

Red eyes sported surprise at the sudden question, but the fellow Prime nodded. 

“ It is,” Minos answered with a small smile, taking a seat beside the human and away from the Cat Prime, much to the latter’s relief.

More silence, this time of the awkward time. 

Miles took this opportunity to down hard the rest of the beer and… yep, his mind was starting to lose it at the sudden intake of a large quantity of alcohol. 

Until a few days ago, he would have easily tanked four to five entire bottles of the drink, but being tired and lacking the energy to process the beer, the Cat Prime wasn’t in his top shape.

He blinked, his sight turning a little blurry and his mind giving one last smart decision before going out from the loop. He had to go and catch some shut-eye… without any derail.

Without hesitation, he wobbled his arm over the counter and tapped his knuckle on the creaky wood. The owner of the pub noticed the gesture and approached. “Do you need something, sir?”

“ I- I wish to pay,” The young man replied, holding back a ‘hic’ from leaving his lips.

The elder nodded and prepared the piece of paper with the correct price of his order and, once he was passed it, Miles’ eyes widened just a fraction at the number. 

He double-checked, narrowing in surprise at the incredibly-cheap cost of a single beer.

The quality was actually better than any he had taken back in Prism and the price was affordable if not a complete steal in his opinion at how low it was. He nodded at the bartender as he fished from his pouch the required amount of money and stood up from his seat.

“ It’s nice to know ya both,” He admitted in a little drunkish tone. “And I hope to see ya later. Going for some nap now.”

There was a small smile on the human’s face. “Well, see you soon too, Miles and… be careful to not trip.” 

As if he could ever stumble right no-Thud

The Cat Prime groaned as his face slammed painfully on the unforgiving wood but he was grateful enough to thank both dudes from picking him up. Minos pulled a little quicker compared to Matt, possibly because of his clearly-superior strength compared to the human.

“ Are you sure you don’t need help to get back to your current home?” Matt offered once again, this time the tempting deal gaining a legitimate interest from Miles… but he shook his head.

“ I want to have a ‘lone walk. Nothing personal,” Miles specified and soon he was let go as he wobbled out of the establishment and back to his old tracks. The old and stinky mattress, being his current objective as of now.

And just as he wandered out in the open with a tired and terribly-influenced mind, he couldn’t help but wonder what kind of day tomorrow was going to be.

After all, he still needed to find some source of income for the sake of surviving the following few days…

* * *

Diana sighed happily as she slowly flipped another page from the picture-book sitting on her lap, her green eyes fixed so intensively at the precious photos contained in that little thing. 

She was glad of having been finally granted some free time from her son’s careful ministrations, the young man having gone to the kitchen to prepare the food for lunch and giving her some long-deserved lone time to spend with herself and only herself.

The woman hummed as she felt being dragged down in multiple memory lanes at the sight of so many beautiful moments of her life. 

Her mind was restless in bringing up the very events that had inspired those pictures, when times were simpler for her and the rest of her family.

Before things could actually escalate to this decaying predicament she was facing, both literally and socially. Only Randal had remained close to the maternal house, being the usual sweetheart by aiding around with his understanding but somewhat lovable manners.

Her big boy had turned in a proper man. Every time she would say this to him to get a blush or two out of him, just for the sake of seeing him flustered and nervous as he had been back as a child.

Yet many things had changed from back then, gone were the years when she was still strong enough to take all the burdens of life at once, now it was a responsibility that Randal shared in half while the tasks of the farm were firmly directed by the lone human she had taken in mere days ago.

Matt was the sweetest young man together with her son, very kind and very understanding of the situation happening around Las Lindas. 

The distrust directed at them had been mostly shattered the evening before during dinner, the gift he had given to her was now safely contained in the well-maintained pot beside her bed, the flowers bringing some more life to the little gray texture of it all.

It had been some time since she had received flowers, the last time being when Randy had returned, bringing a couple of her favorite sunflowers, those having long died away because of the lack of light in the room.

A little tragedy that had saddened her until now, her hopes of having this couple of Lavenders to survive stronger than any of her current ambitions. Which wasn’t much, truth be told, but it was enough to get some effort out of her weary body.

She was tired of doing many things, yes, but she wouldn’t refuse to have this pretty ones be preserved to survive for a long time. They just looked… so gorgeous and lovely for her to stare at. Something that left her mesmerized and quite endeared to, despite the simplicity of their form.

But returning to Matt, her mind couldn’t help but be focused on the little revelation he had allowed to pass to both her and Randal. 

The news that his parent had passed away in a car accident several years ago had been a good motivation for the gloom tone he would adopt when even the topic was slightly touched prior to this revelation and… 

She couldn’t help but  empathize with the continuous struggle happening in the daily life of the young man.

As much as her son would partly understand the situation, having been an orphan for a brief amount of time before getting adopted by Diana, it was the woman herself that found it quite ironic how fate had given her such a specimen that so strongly brought up her distant past.

It was a feeble thing from a long time ago, a time where she was still young and very lonely after losing her own parents during a natural disaster, an earthquake that had devastated much of the previous farm where she had been living for most of her childhood and early teen years. 

It had all happened out of nowhere, shattering her little perspective of things and hopes of a bright future as her focus wavered and she was forced to re-evaluate things about her life that she once thought undeniable.

Things changed as a better Diana had rose from the dark tones that had preceded her new initiatives, her pace eased and quickened at the same time as she found her vocation at the farm she was hired to work for. 

Then it became Las Lindas with the new responsibilities hailing from the fact she was now leading the very activity she had been just a worker for.

A bitter smile had crossed her features when the revelation had properly sunk deep in her brain, her own long-lost memories resurfacing briefly at the time as to remind her of the harshest bits of her early adulthood.

The farm had brought out a new chance at bringing balance to her whole self, but it had also rendered her static and… very-limited. 

Even when  _ he  _ came around, with his loving tones and delightful sweetness, it had been unfair how things had ended up to be.

Even with the most precious of gifts given by the safe birth of her daughter, Mora had been left fatherless because of the development of many shady situations all at once. 

There had been indeed a reason for her former husband’s mysterious disappearance and the very motivation was caused by the very marks covering most of her body now.

Her eyes closed in minor pain, the ‘scars’ leaving her suffering for a while but not as painfully as usual. It had been so ever since Matt had tried to help her up after falling during one of the  _ normal  _ seizures and… the entire pain had completely vanished as he somewhat took it upon himself.

He had been sweating, looking pale and suffering a little as he got her out of the bathroom with Randy’s help. The sight had not left her for some time, persisting even after that night she had woken up into.

Very frustrating to think that somehow the ‘Scars’ were affected and affecting the human that she was harboring as her worker at the farm, yet she was mostly curious as of why this had truly happened.

Never in any books detailing the complicated Prime culture was it mentioned about the effects the ‘Narakhan Culture’ had over humans, death being the sole conclusion to the presence of such ‘degeneration’.

It was that, death. He should have been suffered much more if, but that was only if he had been forced to deal with a ‘turning’ process which hadn’t been the case in question. 

In fact, humans were the most requested medical aid for the treatment of faulted Turnings as those required 

So why was Matt influenced by this phenomenon? She should ask… someone important. But what good would then do to the young man with so many eyes trying to find something ‘wrong’ about him?

Ambar wouldn’t have been the one going through this, possibly someone a little more accustomed to the Narakhans, like Kayin, Grace or even Kate.

The Crests were the sole containers of the ancient knowledge and, in case of something as anomalous as the fact that had just happened, the woman was sure that one would be sent to deal with this disturbance. 

Which is why it was best for Kate to never learn about this. A good-hearted person, but far too strict and rather practical in the solution of most of the problems around her as proven by their first ‘unique’ encounter.

It had been lucky enough for her to conceive her baby girl for her rare biology, but to face the partial wrath of the Crest of Light? Diana was sure that she had dodged quite the big bullet back when she had been protected by Ambar herself.

The High Prime had been rather secretive, yet open in disclosing of the essential information about her case and the importance of keeping a close eye on Mora. 

As much as her daughter behaved and acted as a normal child to a simple teen, the girl had some of the Narakhan’s genes in her body and the lack of the classic black marks on the babe’s skin had struck a weird note to the ever-intelligent Crest of Wisdom.

Caution was advised over the matter, citing the importance of making sure the little Prime enjoyed a safe life away from any major dangers. 

While in a normal context it was sure that Mora wasn’t going to show anything abnormal, the same wasn’t assured in case of extreme danger and any grand calamity.

This is why, despite having the rebellious streak, Diana had been careful enough to make sure her daughter never experienced much of a problem in the family and… that ended biting her back in return as the child, at the time just a young adult, craved in a spoiled manner more information about her father.

Of course, the woman had denied her the chance of knowing the harsh truth and… things fell apart from that. Little Alej had left the farm just two years prior to that turning point and Randy had been studying far from home, thus was unable to visit as frequently as before going to college.

With Mora’s departure for the sake of answers, Diana was left alone without a reason to continue with her burdens. 

The lack of willpower was essential in the hastening of the corruption’s pace and in the span of just five years her health had deteriorated to a point where even preparing something to eat proved to be a difficult task for her body.

Another sigh turned up from her lips and her attention shifted back to the picture book in her hands. She flipped again the page and this time, her stare fell on the child that was Alejandra Coldthorn.

The little intelligent gal that had been under her care for most of her childhood to the late stages of her teenage years. 

She had been a shy but adorable thing that somehow fitted well with the troublesome duo formed by her children.

It’s been just a year since she had last seen the aspiring businesswoman and the last encounter had ended in possibly the worst outcome available. 

While the ambitious young woman had turned into someone respectable and clever even beyond books, there was still something of a pretentious side that had persisted after so long.

And while her reasoning sounded really pleasant and good to hear about the acquisition of Las Lindas under her management from the way she worded it, the owner of the farm knew perfectly the subtle strategy the girl was falling for. 

While her good heart was telling her to take over the lands, Alej was completely unaware of the trap she was going to be deal with if such situation ever came to pass.

While she was leading a company, the board of directors had the most influence and power, people without ethical morals that would gleefully attack their own boss for the sake of obtaining the highest seat of power. 

‘ Misconduct of the administration’ was a thing that had been applied to many modern companies like the one her surrogate daughter was currently ruling over, and that was why any mistake she did, even those for the sake of heart, were going to bitterly hurt her in the long run.

Her mind wandered back to the letter that Matt had given to her, the one that dignified the fact that little Alej had indeed came to Gossamer for a day and… avoided to make contact with her. 

It wasn’t difficult to see that the girl was still afraid of how things had gone ugly that particular day they had last meet and yet she was impressed by the fact that the gal wanted to spare some words with her.

There was the implicit guarantee that nothing about the farm was going to be discussed and that it was only going to be a meeting to talk about… mending things up. To recover what was recoverable and make amends for any mistake made by both sides.

It was a good request, Diana mused quietly, but it would require a reply for the sake of informing of time and place about the meeting. Her house and maybe after lunch.

Actually, it would work better if it was  _ during  _ lunch as to freshen up the old memories about the times she would take a seat at the table, impatiently humming before getting served a delicious plate of vegetable soup.

Diana closed her eyes and nodded to herself. That would certainly work well for her… but what about for Patches? Only the letter she was going to write to reply to her request was going to give her some feedback and… she sighed.

Since when writing had been so much difficult from her part? To even compare it to a dull task was to say that she truly never was a manual worker in her youth. What a shameful decline for someone as strong and hard-working as she once had been…

The woman huffed, eyes opening up as her green orbs returned to the book and… she felt like she would do with some extra photos. She had Randals’, Mora’s and Alej’s pictures of when they were incredibly young and adorable… 

But she had yet to recover anything from Matt’s own childhood. She had thought of searching with some proper phone calls but… she was also aware that most of those things would take a monumental effort to recover and send those back to her.

And it would also be expensive in a normal circumstance and money wasn’t currently easy to provide for anything that ‘serious’, even though she wouldn’t mind to give up some of her old clothes for the sake of getting hands over such an important piece of ‘history’.

That is why, instead of continuing to dully muse over the past or any other sad topic of her life, Diana decided it was time to score some favors with someone she knew that could have easily get access over those ‘sensitive files’.

The phone had been nearby the stand with the flowers and her fingers deftly composed the rarely used number, a private connection to someone set in ‘high’ places. Some time passed, the phone buzzing as it began to contact the other side of the call and-

“ **Mh? Oh, if it isn’t Diana. How are you doing, lovely?** ”

The Cow Prime snorted in amusement. “Doing excellently, Ambar. In fact I can’t hardly leave the bed for how much fun I’m having,” She snapped with a soft tone, causing some rustling to happen right where the High Prime was.

“ **Your sense of humor is still as silly as a rock,** ” The Bear Prime giggled back. “ **But seriously, how are you doing, Diana?** ”

“ The pain has reduced a little… but I don’t think I will last long enough to see the end of the year,” Diana admitted sadly. “Still, I hope to see long enough to see something rather interesting.”

“ **Oh? How much ‘interesting’ are we talking about?** ” 

“ Do you remember when you provided me with Naerie’s photos as a baby?” 

“ **I’m aware of that instance, I also remember how my little girl had gotten a little annoyed by this,** ” Ambar giggled in remembrance. “ **A pity that she forbid me from trying anything similar about her other photos...** ” The Cow Prime could sense the pout on the fellow mother’s face even without seeing it personally.

She sighed. “I need the baby photos of… a new worker of mine. He’s a human and-”

“ **Diana, dear, do you know how difficult it is to barge in and take the photos from under a foreign government’s nose?** ” There was some silence, enough to bring some tension to the woman and then- “ **Yeah, I will do it. It will be a good way to kill time and… can you forward his name?** ”

“ Matt Newcastle.” She said without hesitation nor doubt. It was about time she got hold over these precious data for ‘scientific purposes’- or better, for ‘motherly purposes’.

There was even more silence at this point and… then Ambar spoke once again. “ **Matt Newcastle? That’s his name, right?** ” The High Prime repeated with a strangely curious tone.

Diana nodded slowly. “Yes.”

“ **Mhh, interesting and- Yeah, it will be fun!** ” The Bear Prime accepted eagerly. “ **And I hope you aren’t planning anything ‘curious’ about this fellow-** ”

“ Oh, please Ambar,” Diana replied back with a snort. “As much as he is good looking, I think I can’t see him as a potential lover… differently from yourself.”

“ **Fair enough, remember to take your meds and to not over-exert yourself, lovely lady.** ” The comment was met with a snort and an eye-roll from the Cow Prime. “ **Ciao!** ”

The call ended and… Diana sighed quietly as she started to think more about what was Matt to her and why she did feel attracted… in a non-romantic way. It was odd to explain but, the more she looked at him, working hard and bantering with Randal…

_ **The more she would see someone else that was now away from home.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> "Miles is in, I've yet to recover Learning Experience (the bonus comic which explains why he left Prism University) and I know enough from Learning Curves to know that he has a strong bond with Hope Ravenhurst. And yes, I've seen the latest Knighthood page and..."
> 
> You want to see the full body of little Hope's growth? She did turn out in a proper beauty after three years.
> 
> "Truth be told, I wonder how she will impact on Joy's training, there wasn't much mentioned about her training and (if) she had been trained at all. I can only wonder and think without any important base about it."
> 
> And I'm certainly not forgetting how you brought in Kate with that comment from Diana, I will have you know that she is rather... unimpressed of being mentioned in a bad 'light'.
> 
> "No. We are not punning about-"
> 
> Un-bear-able things. Sure~!
> 
> "I want to say I hate you but-"
> 
> You almost mistook 'Prime' with 'Faunus'. I think you should let go of-
> 
> "How about you go back take care of Sirio and-"
> 
> Oh, I will surely do that and- By the way, are you planning something about my baby boy's arrival? Now I want to know about-
> 
> "I don't know. It's too early for-"
> 
> Yes or no?
> 
> "Ambar, be reasonable-"
> 
> Then I will send Diana a copy of 'your' picture book, little one.
> 
> "...You can't be serious-"
> 
> Yes or no~??
> 
> "Sigh, fine. I will see to have it in... one of the sequels. I don't know how it will fit since it was mentioned in the 'Ask the High Prime' but-"
> 
> Also, isn't the latest question rather curious? Have you been doing something about it?
> 
> "Me? Are you sure you are aware of my bank account?"
> 
> You have a bank account?
> 
> "Exactly."


	7. Of Trust and Mystery

Today’s visit at the market proved to be fairly different than the usual, mostly because it wasn’t only Minos and I keeping an eye over the stand.

Smiling eye-to-eye, Taffy had surprised the two of us by deciding to join us for the whole shift, proclaiming that she was free from work for that day as she had been having some… minor trouble with the recent arrival in town.

Miles wasn’t a bad person, or at least he didn’t look one at first sight and with some bantering. The Cat Prime was amicable, inquisitive and incredibly familiar to my mind because of the relative sadness coming off from his usual staring.

I had caught up with this right by the moment he decided to pick a beer to waste the morning, something that someone his age  _ shouldn’t  _ be doing without a proper reason and… most of the time this meant that there was some drama, or worse, a tragedy behind this behavior.

Yet what truly got the Bunny to request a sudden day off from the owner of the establishment was more related to something that had happened ‘after’ the meeting at the bar. During on her way back to her home, Miles had been walking right on the opposite direction she had taken and had stopped in a drunken stupor to barrage the unsuspecting young woman with flirtatious comments.

Nothing too obscene or crass, but the magnitude and suddenness of this situation had proven to be fairly overwhelming for Taffy, prompting her to make a swift run back to her safe haven. 

It wasn’t unusual, the girl had commented about the matter as if to try and give reasons behind the Cat Prime’s… cat-calling.

I was doubtful of that, feeling that Miles should be calmly reminded that it wasn’t acceptable this kind of attitude. Just a normal warming, nothing completely unreasonable and… violent.

Oh, my mind had been quick to come up with a fit of aggressive resolutions, but the quiet recollection from the bunny did give me time to let the little anger to simmer down, just enough for my logic to pick up a safer and more comfortable approach.

Still, the anti-climatic epilogue helped in putting up some tales from Taffy’s past as the young woman comfortably slipped away from the recent topic to address something I had been completely unaware of.

Taffy had tried to be a chef. 

It had been just a handful years ago, the Bunny trying to get some experience and legitimate certification of her culinary expertise, something that proved to be far beyond her competences because of two distinct issues she slammed into right as she began this challenge.

The first one was the fact that the Alodia’s Cooking School was a prestigious and very strict-kind of school, a proper academy recognized as one of the best in the sector in providing International-tier chefs that were highly-demanded by many functionaries, diplomats and even foreign leaders around the vaster world.

The fact that the girl was more of a ‘practice renders perfection’ than the ‘book-stickler’ that the school wanted from students, that had been the very issue that had kept her from securing a stable post there and was always forced to face numerous ‘threats’ in the form of difficult cooking exams.

Determination, willpower and knowledge over the subjects were enough to put her to a sufficient grade as clumsiness (to a degree worse than the one she was still struggling with), ineptitude as a strong leader and a low self-esteem proved to be her downfall.

In fact, the second issue and the very problem that got her to quit the harsh trials near the very end of her career at Alodia’s was the fact that she had been missing some documentation during her enrollment to the Cooking School.

There weren’t clear instructions regarding the composition of the Curriculum containing the required papers to legally accept students in, this bureaucratic mess resulting in many apprentices to be expelled out of nowhere and without hesitation.

Protests had been erected against the establishment, but the prestigious reputation and the impressive legal team available to the school was enough to deter a grand majority of those wronged by this lazy situation created by the academy itself.

Taffy should have been expelled by all accounts, and she admittedly said that she should have left the moment she realized about this predicament, but the principal of the school decided to give her a ‘chance’.

The Bunny Prime was deprived of a social group, forced to attend classes as ‘willing’ assistants to many teachers and then she was forbidden to take part at sport activities ‘for the sake of not having her forget her ambitions’.

I had felt fury rising with past’s one, Minos seemingly in the same tune as he huffed with some irritation at what he was hearing from the girl. Seriously, what kind of trash would go for that crap?

She giggled as I voiced this inner question for her to hear, a sudden blush appearing on her face. 

A pretty smile was then displayed, a tiny smirk reaching out too as she started to thank us for the support and sympathy over her previous plight while also offering another slice from the chocolate cake she had brought for today.

The sweet treat was delightful and the chocolate had been given a hint of strawberry before being used to coat the texture of the cake. It was a good delicacy that gave me the energy of going through the stand-duty and keep up without any major difficulty with her stories.

It was around two hours after beginning the shift that I decided to intercede with a topic of mine, feeling like I might as well disclose about a good hobby of mine that turned out to be a good way to get some income out of it.

“ You know, Taffy,” I started with a nod, my voice catching both Primes’ attention. “That reminds me of how the misadventures I had as a photograph until just a year ago.”

Green eyes glinted curiosity, same for Minos’ red ones and I decided to not draw out too much the quiet.

“ I spent a good amount of years trying to get some professional degree as a journalist,” I narrated with a calm tone, mind wandering right back at when I had started to mess around with my camera. Or… what became ‘my’ camera after my parents’ death.

A little device that once had been my mother’s as she had indeed ventured herself over the opportunity to become a food journalist before settling as a house-wife for the sake of giving me a decent childhood. 

She had tried to think of some way to keep up both with her work while also keeping a presence around me but… this wasn’t something truly reconcilable because of the long shifts she was supposed to go through.

There was also the fact that the hard-work of the chores was difficult at first and that she did face her sheer amount of troubles while keeping watch over my growth and my education, but she was a strong woman that managed through and  _ through. _

_ ... _

‘ O-Okay, returning back to the story.’

“ Simple photography, maybe an article or two,” I continued with a small smile. “But I never went too deep about the prospect of becoming affiliated to some major newspaper.”

“ Why so?” Minos asked curiously. “I thought that a stable line of work would have been a good way to secure a decent livelihood.” He explained with an intrigued tone, something I had been ready to reply to, but Taffy decided to jump in.

“ It’s more of a unique situation about journalism itself. Many prefer to not get attached to any major news-network for the sake of not getting tied in some unpleasant correlation in case of scandal,” She blinked, glancing once more at me with a sad expression. “There is also the fact that the income wouldn’t be as good as freelancers would get.”

I smiled and nodded, hand reaching to pat at her shoulder. “It wasn’t that bad,” I commented mirthfully, trying to defuse the glint coming from the Bunny. “The risk of freelancing was balanced by the opportunity of meeting various important people without getting screwed by the reputation of any of the big names.”

“ So the more riskier, the higher the pay?” Minos simplified and I gave him a simple nod.

“ In a nutshell.” I replied with a nod, both smiling at the quirky answer.

But before the discussion could have continued beyond that confirmation, our attention was drawn by a curious song originating from… Minos. 

It was a catchy tune that lacked any familiar notes and voices, just a woman giggling mid-singing while the man’s voice nervously continued with the confusing and undecipherable lyrics.

Like a karaoke made by a familiar… voice.

Minos’ face turned red as he slowly went to pull out his phone from the pocket of his pants and… his color drained back to normal as he noticed the name displayed there. “It’s Naerie,” He said with a quiet tone, but it was still loud enough to get a surprised blink out of me and… a confused and suspicious frown from Taffy.

I noticed her reaction and nodded at Minos as the Bull passed me the device. “It’s a friend of Minos, He will explain and… I will be back soon.”

The Bunny looked ready to ask for more details but the fellow Prime stopped her by starting to explaining her the situation without adding any of the ‘weird’ details of the predicament that I was dealing with even now.

I put the phone by my ear and I spoke. “Hello?”

“ _ **Hello and good morning, Matt.** _ ” The same dull-like tone as last time greeted me, to which I smiled a little.

“ Good morning to you too, Naerie,” I said with a calm but happy voice, getting a hum from the other side of the call.

“ _ **Oh? I thought you would still be sleepy this early in the day-** _ ” She mused distractedly, drawing a curious blink at the unexpected comment, but then she continued. “ _ **Anyway, I have some news regarding your situation. I managed to get some more data and… things are far more complicated than I had initially thought and the investigation will be a little longer than expected.** _ ”

“ Really?” I asked with a surprised tone. “Is there anything I can do, maybe give some more info about-”

I was pretty sure that I could have at least forwarded some more help. I knew that some of the things about me that weren’t exactly saved up for people to know and make use. But just as I offered this, I was interjected by the Prime on the other side of the call. 

“ _ **There is plenty of data about yourself, enough to at least give me a way to properly understand what could have happened to you and… the issue is more related to a ‘lack’ of means to corroborate the data.** _ ” She explained, pausing for a moment as she gave out the proper cause of this delay.

A lack of means? What kind of ‘means’ was she referring to?

Actually, I knew very little about the kind of power the young woman could exert to truly search any possible hints to the mysterious situation of that very night. 

Or better, I was terribly clueless about the full reach of the girl’s mother about the case as Minos had originally gone to ask her for help about my simple plight.

Still, I couldn’t help but let my thoughts wander at that confusing day, the hours I had completely forgotten about it. My mind was blank about it, nothing left only the after-taste of a hangover that had fully-materialized right as I woke up.

“ That sounds rather confusing. I don’t want to sound demanding but-”

“ _ **The investigation is going to be dealt with and concluded without further issues, Matt,** _ ” Naerie interrupted with a sigh. “ _ **It’s just a minor obstacle that I plan to solve today. My mother is currently free and I think I should be able to get access to proper instruments to overcome this issue by the time I finish talking to her.** _ ”

I blinked, flinching a little as I considered the fact that from Minos’ wording Naerie should have been able to have completed everything by now. 

This new development disproving that this wasn’t actually the case… did leave me somewhat unnerved to the core.

‘ What happened that night?’

“ I see...” I hummed softly. “Then I suppose I will wait for another call from you?” I pointed out at the young woman.

“ _ **I will call sooner compared to last time,** _ ” Naerie mentioned dutifully. “ _ **Despite the limitations imposed by the fact we can talk to each other only thanks to Minos, I will see for things to be solved quickly-** _ ”

“ I understand, Naerie,” I interrupted with a small smile, sensing that she was indeed stressing out how she was putting grand effort on the matter. 

Something I was more than happy to appreciate, but also something I think I didn’t stress enough to praise. “I can feel from your voice that you mean it. I’m not doubting you and I’m glad that you are giving it a mindful study.”

There was a pause, utter silence coming from the other side of the call as I waited for some answer to that and-

“ _ **Thank you,** _ ” The girl said with something in her usual tone. “ _ **I will make sure that you will be informed of any news about the matter.** _ ”

I blinked. “You are welcome and… remember to not stress yourself over my case, it’s… not that important to warrant that much time.” I said with a genuinely concerned edge, then blinking again as I decided it was good time to end the call. 

“An I hope to hear from you later.” I asked with some hesitation, a little nervous over the fact I might have been a little forward there. 

I mean, I didn’t expect her to react to this little informal comment and yet, I was proven wrong by the response followed.

“ _ **I will call you soon,** _ ” She said quickly, something different in her words. “ _ **And bye.** _ ”

I smiled and nodded. “Bye.” 

The call ended there, the phone going silent. 

My stare lingered for a moment at the quiet device before I slowly started to make my way back to where Minos and Taffy were calmly waiting for me and I thought that I was finally done with anything even remotely strange for that day and… I was proven wrong when I turned my sight at Taffy and saw her puff her cheeks in a pout.

Arms crossed, green eyes narrowing on me with a steel-like tone and her entire body twitching in annoyance, I was conflicted by how adorable and concerning that full-body expression the Bunny was delivering back to me. 

I blinked, eyes glancing barely at Minos and the Bull ‘looked’ away in a rather faux and ‘naive’ way.

Another blink, my lips parted to ask what was going on, but the girl jumped at the opportunity to finally dispense me with the truth. “Matt, we are good friends you and I, correct?” She started, my mouth closing quickly at the sharp and sudden question, I found myself frowning at the query and then I nodded.

She huffed. “Please explain to me when you were planning to finally tell me that you don’t know how did you end up here in town?!” Her irked tone, coupled with her cheeks puffing once again in renewed irritation, but I glanced once more at Minos with a neutral stare, the man giving up even more hints to his guilt by the way he kept looking away from me.

‘ I thought we were bros!’

“ And don’t try to focus on poor Minos,” The Bunny snapped with some fury. “I had to literally press him to tell me about this and- Did you even think of ever telling me about this? Or were you expecting for this to pass unnoticed and-”

“ I don’t mean to sound harsh, but this isn’t even much of a problem,” I tried to interrupt. “In fact, Naerie said that things were going to be fixed soon and-”

“ T-That isn’t even the problem!” Taffy shot back with a snort. “I want this situation to be solved because I care about you… but I would have liked to know.” She admitted with a sigh. “Matt, you are one of the few friends I’ve in town, the other one being Minos and… you promised me that-”

Her eyes went wide as I zeroed the distance between us and gave her a hug. She tensed up in her chair, her face pressed on my chest as I snuggled the top of her head. 

“ That I would let you help me,” I ended the sentence for her, a tiny smile playing on my lips. “I know and… I’m sorry. I will not do anything like this… ever again.” I promised and soon she melted in the hug and I found her own arms wrapping around my chest.

“ _ Dummy _ ,” Taffy sighed tiredly as she leaned her forehead on my chest. “ _ Silly dummy _ .”

I smirked and nodded, a little glad that there hadn’t been a greater escalation. 

That had been… quite unexpected and I was worried by how things could have turned out to be if I hadn’t given some more thoughts about the promise I had to uphold to her.

She trusted me to do that and… I kept my promises I made with people, like the one I had with Diana and Randal about-

…

…

Wait. I glanced back and turned at the now emptied stand and then glanced at Minos. “N-Not that I’m trying to break the moment but… what happened to the stuff in display?” I asked quietly, the Bull’s red eyes blinking before shifting to look at Taffy.

I looked down and I was graced by a gorgeous smile from her. 

“I decided to help a little and… people know me in town. They just accepted the prices and said it was actually pretty affordable.” She admitted happily and I squeezed the hug a little more tightly and snuggled on her pink-hair.

“ Thank you, Taffy.” I replied with a sigh, the girl more than happy to be blissfully glomped by the embrace I had initiated.

Yep, things were going to be fine now.

* * *

The halls of the humongous mansion that was owned by the High Prime were impressively decorated, a recognition to the powerful role and duties bestowed to the one and  only lady Ambar, with paintings, family pictures and various other art-related pieces that granted prestige to the every corner of the beautiful home.

Yet that day, the ones that led directly to the woman’s office were soon turning to be the setting for a rather unusual scene for many of the servants around there to witness it. 

Naerie, the quiet but blunt daughter of the important woman, was calmly pacing back and forth through the single corridor where the closed room was, barely paying attention to the surprised looks coming from the people walking around for their chores. 

She was clearly waiting for her mother’s free time, maybe to disclose about something important that she had to tell her and… she looked rather different than usual. 

She seemed nervous, someone with a decade or two of service at the home would have commented, her body just a little tense but far from the usual relaxed stance she was seen sporting in normal situations.

The simple fact that the girl had been pacing back and forth since she had arrived to the place rather than taking a seat nearby the closed door as to patiently wait for Ambar’s soon-to-come free time was the first, if not the strongest, clue that something had gotten to the younger Bear Prime. 

And whatever was causing this ‘distress’, it had left the young woman rather nervous and interested on getting a meeting with Lady Ambar as fast as possible.

It was the first time the girl had appeared this much ‘emotional’ over things in her home, or at least before the sight of so many people, and these hints of frustration that she was so carelessly sporting on her expression were possibly from the unknown research she had been doing in her mother’s stead for a close friend of the High Prime. 

It wasn’t unusual for the young woman to be taking several tasks and duties from her mother’s ever-growing burden, with Naerie having more than once vocally agreed that she had merely wanted to lessen up the load of problems, paperwork and general interventions in which the highest role in the Prime’s government was required to give a look or more about.

And proving to be someone that stood on par to the exceptional leader of the continent in terms of beauty, intelligence and determination, the girl was also well-accepted as a good replacement in the few cases where the High Prime was supposed to be around to either mingle, strike deals or even be there as a calm presence but couldn’t for better reason.

Which hardly could translate in anything even remotely serious nowadays.

The only thing that the younger Prime couldn’t certainly compare to her mother was the Crest of Wisdom. 

Lady Ambar had been the guardian of this strong connection to the deities of old even before the beginning of the Galactic War, people easily recognizing the might and the tactical cleverness she displayed in those trying times.

Sadly, the Crest had been rarely used by the woman, the Lady pointing out how smooth things were going for their civilization and that using the incredible power of Wisdom so selfishly would only anger those that had dispensed her this responsibility.

And she wasn’t lying regarding the state of things, actually one could say that she was minimizing the height of her leadership with the curt reply to this crucial question. 

Humanity and Prime-kind had been prospering from the eternal alliance for centuries now, the combination of both cultures promoting the best and optimal future for both races as they all walked towards a shining path of success and ever-lasting peace.

Yet, unaware to the servants’ distracted thoughts about the matter, Naerie wouldn’t have certainly declined any help coming from the Crest of Wisdom to answer some curious questions she had regarding the surreal situation that had developed during her investigation.

It had been a quite the curious week of work, she reckoned with a blissfully quiet thought, her mind reminding her of how a silly discovery of hers born from tiredness and boredom regarding the surprisingly-complicated case about Matt Newcastle had led to a confusing and suspicious revelation about the mysterious situation itself.

While the data available to her about the human’s life, personality and general characteristics had been proven genuine and legitimate thanks to an accurate and precise study of the security system that had the first duty of keeping it all safe from any unpleasant eyes, her light-blue eyes couldn’t help but widen up for a brief moment as she came to realize the presence of this minor and almost insignificant detail that gave off the worst development possible.

The information about the human was well-summarized and cataloged, the life-points brought up by the program being more than enough to give the young Prime a full sight over the young man’s life and  a ny possible hints and clues that could have suggested to anything regarding the ‘fateful’ night proving to be missing or even eluding her numerous analysis.

His photo had been there too, giving her a calm smile as she silently studied the case of this unique individual… and nothing came up from these first few days. 

Everything was confusingly normal and there wasn’t any anomaly that could allowed her to establish a lead to follow and determine what had happened that specific day.

Naerie had closed her eyes, leaned her back silently on her chair as she tried to plan out her following resting schedule. The case had indeed took her out from her usual daily routine, causing her to lose some precious sleep hours she wouldn’t mind to obtain once again.

Then she returned to stare silently at the screen, trying to find anything from the initial page for the umpteenth time. It was a task she had gone through numerous times now and she was indeed feeling irritated at the lack of major progress about it. 

Her eyes settled to finally lazily glance at the photo, her mind finding it curious how she was aware of his current looks while he was supposedly unaware of hers. 

She had been surprised to learn from Minos that the young man was completely unaware of her real identity and that… had left her quite interested about the way he spoke to her. Quite formal, but not too much. 

He was polite for the sake of being polite with another person. Which was an eased versions of the overly-formal tones she would have to endure during normal functions with her mother.

Then the girl’s eyes wandered below his face, ignoring his blond hair and dark-sea orbs as she suddenly found a strange element fixed within the photo. A detail left by the camera responsible for taking this photo that finally gave her something to work with!

Naerie had given the picture little attention for a solid three days of dutiful research, her mind giving priority to the words and the text rather than the seemingly-normal image she had been provided with and then, after these three days of endless studying the case, her tired stare ended up falling to the edge of the picture where a small, and almost impossible to see at first sight, manifested to her brain.

The photo was supposed to have been taken five years ago during a renewal of Matt’s ID card and passport. In fact, the date in the description presented right below the picture assured that it had been taken in 2212, the month and day ignored as the young Prime fixed on only the year.

If the young woman had to assume from the truthfulness of the folder given by the system that the image itself was legitimate and not a counterfeit to skeptically analyze for some foul manipulation, then the series of yellow numbers written there for everyone there to see were to be taken in with a serious and undeniable mindset as they were part of the proper picture. 

The reasoning behind this thought was actually simple as, instead of the expected ‘2212’ given by the machine-provided description, the photo gave a completely different date that had left her… quite stomped. It was the first time for Naerie to see an impossibly-genuine proof as the one she had just proven and yet it was there for her to see in its full glory.

Still, the Bear Prime ended up dropping in what seemed to be a rather deep rabbit hole with the revelation that would follow up after that discovery, finding out about something a little more concerning and somewhat worrying than a mere case of kidnapping. 

Without hesitation, the young woman had gone to check for anything regarding a ‘Mattia Castelnuovo’ right to the date mentioned and…

The Prime did end up finding a single match in her quick search and it was about someone with the name connected to the ‘2014’ year she had found in the photo. 

That little number was enough to send her stomach knotting nervously at the impressive result it had just yielded, revealing something she wouldn’t have expected to find with that shocking connection. 

Showing the same calm smile and portraying the same appearance that the girl had just witnessed shown in the picture, Naerie blinked several times at the same photo she had just came to look at.

It was here, the same picture that she had just come from thanks to the strange hint, but differently from the original file, there was no description to this file compared to the one she had just left from. 

The young woman then proceeded to check for any hidden content that could have been masked by any lock on the system and her blue eyes had softly narrowed as she realized about the interesting large size of the file, hinting that it was indeed hiding something.

It was as big as the one she had just finished to study from, much less that a Gigabyte, but the girl soon realized that she couldn’t actually access to the entire data because of the powerful lock set on it. 

An odd development that did increase the worry currently stirring within her chest and enough to seek support from her mother for some answers about the maddening matter.

Naerie had been given access to the highest-level parameters of the system that contained, preserved and studied the data of the people living in Neo-Earth, thus providing her with the power to supposedly enter any profile she wished to look at thanks to her mother’s trust over her good-will. 

Of course, this was done in the name of duty and serious working as the security of the files was their utmost priority for the sake of keeping relations warm with the rest of the world.

Yet, with the file denying her true access, the Bear Prime was stopped from getting the answers she had wanted to bring up in the next call with Matt and she was also proven that her current security permissions weren’t the highest possible. 

She had sighed back then, once again leaning on her chair as to seek some advice over the matter and… she had promised to the young man some answers about what had happened to him. 

The case was absurd, yet the normal citizen did need to learn about the truth of what had gotten him to instantly end up in Gossamer without any known means and reasons.

The young woman reflected on the very individual and she came to realize that the true reason she was this determined to find a solution to his worrisome problem was a little beyond sheer professionalism.

Considering the quirkiness of her usual days here at home and even outside, Naerie wouldn’t be lying in saying that the minimal note of informality coming off by the end of the brief exchanges she had with Matt had been quite refreshing to digest compared to other individuals she knew about and she couldn’t help but also compare these to the few times she would spend around Shin.

The eldest child of the Crest of Light had been her first friend, her childhood friend, someone that Naerie wasn’t afraid to give blunt thoughts about doubts and situations she was aware of and she was happy to know that he was glad to spend some of his free time around her. 

Being a hard-working student and a sociable individual, Shin was always there to gladly accept her invitations for some discussions and chats, sometimes leaving her with a minor doubt of doing bad towards the altruistic Tiger Prime.

It would always leave her quite doubtful the fact that with her request for help, Naerie was always depriving her close friend of the opportunity to get some important stuff done or even… get a girlfriend. He was already of age to know about the responsibilities of a relationship beyond mere friendship and the Bear Prime only wanted the best for him. 

Which was to see him in a happy family with someone he loved to the fullest.

And it was her personal duty as his first and closest friend to make sure he would attain that happiness in due and proper time.

It was, in her genuine opinion, the highest of duties she could have been bestowed with, even beyond the mere one proposed by the role of High Prime.

But she was digressing with the unrelated topic, her mind returning to the present as she decided to finally stop with her silly pacing and to instead finally check on her mother’s office. 

While Ambar’s schedule did say that there was a supposedly two-hours long meeting happening inside her office, the secretary sitting in the booth just outside the High Prime’s room had been confused as she had denied the presence of any important individual coming to visit for that day.

Mustering up a determined sigh, Naerie decided to venture inside the office and prepared herself to deal with whatever was going on inside the office with her usual calm composure and her steel-like mind. 

The young woman stepped inside the mostly silent room, quiet giggles greeting her ears just a moment after door behind her had closed shut and… she glanced at the origin of the noise, her sight landing right by the small area where the couches were.

Lying on her toned belly on the long couch nearby her desk, Ambar continued to mirthfully stare at what looked to be a photo-book. 

The scene struck familiar to the girl, her eyes assuming a little more of panic as she walked towards the fellow Prime and… Naerie was given hint that it wasn’t ‘that’ very photo-book she had made sure to have erased from existence.

Instead, what was displayed by the book was quite… familiar. And undeniably cute by just a glance.

The first of the many pictures was what had truly compelled the girl to pause from her planned request, just to see the one which childhood was currently being treated as a sweet mean to reach wholesome amusement from her giddy mother.

Set down on a bed and with his arms spread and waiting for a hug, a little human toddler was staring at the photographer (and the one watching the adorable picture) almost in a craving way, selfishly but cutely demanding for some cuddling. 

He seemed so frail and innocent, him and his little tuft of sandy hair that-

…

Naerie blinked, tilting closer to see that the child had also a pair of dark-blue eyes.

Just like Matt Newcastle.

Her brain went still just for a mere instant as she recoiled from the cute sight and the sudden realization, her  eyes slowly turning to the woman currently endeared by the thick book in her hands.

It was curious to see her mother spend her free time with a photo-book rather than enjoying the boons of her charms. 

Yet the fact that she had been busy with anything  _ different  _ than this was more than enough to put the girl in a relaxed mood.

“ Mother,” Naerie started, waiting for Ambar to grace her presence. The woman did in fact realize of her rather close presence, the Bear Prime almost jumping in surprise at the call from her daughter.

Eyes going momentarily wide open, the High Prime relaxed quite quickly the moment she discovered whom had decided to interrupt her own ‘study’ of this curious character. 

He was quite… adorable as a child and part of her mind couldn’t help but wonder how he was faring right now.

Seriously, who wouldn’t want to know how a cutie had turned out to be after a decade or two? Maybe even three and four?

“ Oh, Naerie,” She greeted with a nod and a tiny smile, sliding up the couch and taking a seat on it, gesturing her child to sit on the newly-created space beside her. “I didn’t see you coming and… I hope there is a good reason to interrupt my important meeting.”

The young woman blinked at the ‘chiding’ but complied with the request from her parent, relaxing a little at the surprisingly-comfy furniture. 

“There is no one here-” Naerie tried to say, only to be interrupted by Ambar.

“ Nonsense,” The woman replied happily, bringing up the book. “In fact, I have the adorable fellow over there that was entertaining me with some amazing feat… like trying to get a hug out of me and-” She blinked, tilting her head to the side as if to think about something important. 

“ Do you think I should ask your dad for a son or… even another daughter?” Ambar’s smile widened at the self-proposed idea. “Would you like to become a big sister, sweetie?”

The immense and sheer effort displayed by Naerie in not getting distracted by the confused request was portrayed by how she calmly replied back to her cheerful parent’s silly escalation caused by the impossible to determine amount of sugar in those photos.

It was still a good question, but one that would have to wait for a better moment.

“ Mother, I think we can discuss about this on a later date,” The young woman said with a sigh. “I think you should see this now. It’s important.” She brought up the hologram with the second file regarding the human.

At first the High Prime had blinked at the sudden request, but soon she was humming quietly as she stared at the file herself with a proper glance. 

Her eyes lingered for more than a handful of seconds, narrowing as she fixed her attention at the issue shown in front of her.

Then Ambar blinked again, this time her whole body tensing up just a little. 

Differently from just a few moments ago, the quirky cheerfulness had vanished as a serious expression had appeared on her face.

The device was finally given to the Bear and the older woman started to study the document itself with an intrigued glance, her fingers wandering over the authorizations attached to the file. 

None were being unlocked, even when the High Prime, the founder of the security system itself, was the one forcing the locks open.

“ Now, isn’t that surprising...” Ambar mentioned with a calm tone, her lips twitching in a flinch. “And also quite familiar, now that I think about it.”

She then nodded and glanced at her daughter. “Is this the file about the human-”

“ It’s a second file dedicated to him.” Naerie interrupted. “I found it thanks to the date shown by the picture-”

“ Which would mean that someone had indeed hacked within the mainframe and created two different files from nothing.” The woman finished with a sigh. “That is something that is indeed interesting… but I think I will have to ask to the only individual capable of doing this kind of stuff without leaving a single trace.”

‘ So, mother knows about someone capable of doing this? Why didn’t she tell me abou-’

“ Still, I want you to return your focus on the ‘why’ he was brought here,” Ambar mused back. “I don’t think he is aware of what is going on and I would prefer him to be blissfully unaware of what you just discovered her.”

“ I’m supposed to call him soon-” Naerie tried to reason, hoping for her mother to not deny her the chance of getting some proper answers out from whoever she was going to meet up with soon.

“ Oh?” Ambar blinked in surprise at the mentioning of this detail. Then her eyes glinted teasingly. “Does that mean that someone is interested in providing information to their ‘client’? Do I need to bring him to dinner already or-”

“ Mother.” The quick interjection was met with silence. “I don’t see him like that and I ask you to not disturb him for such a silly reason.”

There was a pause…

Then Ambar smiled brightly and nodded. 

“Sure thing, sweetie,” She started with a happy tone. “But maybe you should take the day off for today.” The woman concluded with another nod.

… “ What?”

“ You seem quite tired,” The High Prime pointed out while humming, tilting close as to look at the girl’s eyes. “And you have sleep-bags. Just get a day off so that mommy dearest doesn’t feel concerned about her little cub.”

Then the wise Bear Prime shrugged, smiling a cheeky smirk. “Maybe do some paperwork by home or… have fun with Shin?”

The young woman frowned at the innuendo thrown by her parent, but sighed as she realized that she was indeed feeling quite tired of what had just happened in the last three days. 

She was a Prime, the daughter of the leader of the Prime-kind too, but Naerie did also spend three days trying to conclude this nigh-impossible case at once.

She had burned her energies in long studies and track-searching, all leading up to this frustrating development that pushed her out of the case. It was annoying… because she did want to call once again Matt.

To tell him that there had been a breakthrough, that she was really there to bring an end to this query and… she sighed and nodded. 

“I suppose I can take a break.” The girl admitted, a yawn trying and failing to reach out from her lips. “Also, I think I will contact Shin too-” 

“ Make it a full-day off to enjoy with Kate’s sonny or I will see personally to recover your picture book and-” 

“ Try that and I will burn the strange clothes you keep in your wardrobe.” Naerie shot back coldly, referring to the curious dresses that were inspired to some… cartoons? 

Even Shin knew about them but he would turn rather shy when she would ask some explanation about those. It was like there was something ‘off’ about these that put her quite… in an embarrassed mood, especially by how skimpy some of those clothes were.

But feeling fairly tired and in need of some rest, the young Prime merely nodded as she stood up and started to walk towards the door-

“ By the way, dear,” Her mother said calmly and genuinely curious. “Is there something you wish to tell me about Matt Newcastle? Anything that I can find… interesting~?”

Naerie closed the door behind her quickly, a muffled groan managing to get through the small barrier she had put between herself and the rather-perverted woman.

“ _ Meanie~! _ ”

She let out a sigh as she nodded at the nearby secretary and started to make her way back to her room, her shoulders slumped a little as she wouldn’t mind crashing on her bed for… a few hours.

Another sigh and Naerie was finally off for some proper rest…

Completely unaware that things were far more complicated than she thought them to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you think?
> 
> Other than the fact you should take the same advice I gave to my daughter?
> 
> I'm fine-
> 
> It's almost midnight and you have been awake for almost twenty hours now. Go to sleep-
> 
> I'm going, I'm going but... what do you think?
> 
> About what in particular? 
> 
> How I have shown you and how I alluded to-
> 
> It was well-done. Honest. But I think you need the sleep.
> 
> I-I'm fi-zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
> 
> Sigh, what a lovely dummy... I wonder if you are ready for tomorrow's surprise. Because I sure am~!


	8. Restoration

It was supposed to be the usual morning at the farm for Randal, his routine seemingly going unchanged like it had been for the last few weeks here at Las Lindas. 

Helping his mother had been a priority that he had carefully integrated as part of the multiple chores he would have to take over.

A grand task that was as straining as oddly satisfying, the fact that he could spend more time with his only parent was more than enough to compensate the draining effects of going through the issues at home. 

For the Collie it was like he had gone back in time to when he would still be studying before college, before he had to leave home for the interesting and quite different lifestyle that only Prism University could have afforded.

The place was massive, well-decorated and exceptionally-filled with numerous faculties that allowed a vast range of careers’ choices for the students going there. 

The ideal place that was envied by other major universities across the globe, accepting everyone at an affordable price that was well-distributed between the teachers’ pays and the books dispensed by the local libraries near the campus.

It was a good few years that were spent there to get a good education and also prepare himself for the bigger world around him. 

Without Mora, Alej and mom, things sure felt difficult by the very first days as the Prime wasn’t initially a social butterfly.

With time, patience and determination, this detrimental flaw of his personality was turned back in something that had allowed him to become a model student before teachers and… to have some interesting nights with some of the girls studying there.

It had been the best experience away from home and, part of him would have had Randal also explore the possibility to become a professional player of any of the sports he had the chance to try and enjoy during his stay at Prism.

All sports was fair play in his eyes, everything that required running, rough-housing and anything that sports were best known for. 

It was what truly he loved to do the most and that had been almost enough to win him a position in one of the football’s team searching for young players.

Yet the offer had arrived at the time he had been packing to return back home, the news of his mother’s conditions worsening to a point where she required someone to be around to take care of her.

Coincidentally with this development, the last three workers at the farm provided their resignations and decided to not urge the woman to pay for that month’s wages, knowing very well that it wouldn’t have been correct and… honest.

It was something that Randal could say without hesitation, the fact that all the workers at Las Lindas had been recruited following two requirements. 

The first one was actually the capacity to do the tasks they were going to be hired for, the latter being something a little more unusual but quite interesting. And that was a good heart.

Everyone that was no longer there, either away from the town for other works’ needs or to outright live away from the place with their new families, had left small bits of themselves, of their kind and hard-working souls, to the simple farm owned by Diana Linda.

And their last worker was the legacy of this once-grand place.

Matt was meticulous with his efforts, cautious to not mess things up during work and incredibly experienced in most of the tasks regarding to the job. 

Something that had been both a blessing and an interesting development in what had initially felt the end of the long-lasting Las Lindas, the final days of the family-owned activity.

Yet the human had come to stay and was slowly lifting them from the dark abyss below their feet, his friendly tones and personality revealing to be also refreshing to have around. It was enough for Randal to actually be hopeful of things finally stabilizing, that there was still worth fighting in that decaying farm.

Plants were carefully taken care of, with the newer ones planted around the available fertile land and with the older ones being sold with reasonable costs at the local market in town. 

Both tasks rendered successfully by the young man himself, something that Randy was partly-appreciative of as he felt the lessening of something similar to a guilt burden he had for a long time now.

While his principal duty was to help his mother’s recovery, the Collie also felt that the farm had to be preserved and improved as it had been the woman’s life-project. 

It had been where Diana had spent most of her life, the place where her family had grown up into and where she had experienced the highest and lowest bits of her life.

So, with Matt genuinely spending time in renewing the conditions of the entire farm, Randal noticed quickly on the fact that the lovely woman that was his mother had been getting happier by the day. 

It had been subtle at first, but the pace had grown to a point where it was painfully obvious to see how much she was glad to see Las Lindas breathing a healthier breath with her latest worker.

The human was possibly unaware of this, having never seen what the woman had been like  _ before _ he had arrived and… the Collie also noticed another interesting detail coming from Diana, by the way she would look at the young man now living with them.

It wasn’t anything worrisome from what the Prime could understand after numerous situations regarding this tidbit, he had realized early on that, and yet the resulting suggestion regarding this curious case had actually left him in a somewhat bitter state.

He wasn’t angry neither to his mom, nor to the unaware human that was unconsciously subjected to this situation… but the Collie did felt that somehow this was connected to something that happened while he hadn’t been present around to witness it escalating.

Mora was a smart young woman, a very headstrong one even when going to make mistakes, but still someone with a positive and good heart that she followed even now. 

The fact that his sister had decided to rise up when mom couldn’t tell her for the umpteenth time about her father’s disappearance… it had left him with several conflicting about the two lovely ladies.

From a fair point, the youngest of the two had been asking about this for a long time now and she was had been old enough to bear through any horrible detail about her missing parent. 

Mora had been incredibly patient over the matter, hoping to get some answers once she had grown mature enough to tank any hit of that caliber.

Yet mom’s resistance had been fierce and somewhat intriguing. It was rare to see Diana this much determined on keeping some news like that to herself, especially since her daughter had deserved the truth about it. This front was standing on solid basis, but what had kept Randal from actually taking Mora’s side… 

It had been some papers he had found on his own. Money and objects being sent to the same address, to a place nearby the capital of the continent and assigned to a pharmaceutic organization. 

Nothing much was given by the quick research he did around the group, nothing about someone that could match up with the little description he had of his ‘adoptive father’.

Annoyance and irritation had been stuck at him for some time about that but the Collie had all of it hidden in a calm mask of faux happiness while around his mother, the woman still unaware of his little snooping around about the man that once was her lover.

And while nothing suspicious was raised by the normal corporation, the fact that they hadn’t sent the stuff sent by Diana back and demanded a cessation of this activity… led the young man to thing that there was something more about their apparent innocence over the situation.

He shook his head as he finished washing his hands by the sink, having done everything he had to do in the bathroom for this morning as he opened the door and walked out, nodding at the human that was now going inside the place.

As the door closed once again, his brown eyes blinked for a moment right at it as he felt nostalgic of the pattern the two men had adopted for their needs by the bathroom. It was so easy and comfy, nothing much had differed from his long-lasting routine and… his sight was so quickly confusing Matt with someone else.

The same sleepy expression, shoulders slouching and a slow walking pace, the human was surprisingly similar to Mora in that aspect of their daily-life. 

Not much of the perfect morning person, coffee being the reason why he managed to keep up with the hard-life of being the lone worker at farm, the same had been when his sister would have to quickly do her preparations for school as the timing of the bus was hellish to deal with.

It was ever-so punctual but also impatient, the old driver being quite the grim figure that wouldn’t care if someone missed any important dates because of that. 

It had been a nightmare to face back when Randal was still dealing with high school and it had been the same for both Mora and Alej.

Differently from her surrogate sibling, the young Coldthorn was more prone to accept the needs of waking up incredibly early in the morning, her planning for the first part of the day being as precise as incredibly-difficult to uphold some of the more trying days.

She was still careful enough to not exert herself beyond her limits, something that had been drilled in her workaholic brain by Diana herself. 

Being a hard-worker was fine, but going too quick or too strong with anything would end up messing plans rather than get those done with.

The lesson was duly accepted, Alej never much daring to go and try to wake earlier than she would usually do as she learned to treasure more of her sleep hours. Something that Randal was unsure if this was still kept up with, but he hoped that his surrogate little sister had managed to not fall into that foul habit.

He turned the corner in the hallway, entering the kitchen-living room where his mother was amusingly watching photos from an unfamiliar picture book. 

She had been quite nostalgic of the past memories, having gone through their normal photo-books several times now.

The fact that this in particular seemed to not bring any familiarity was enough to catch the Collie’s attention, the young Prime approaching the little table where Diana was sitting by, slowly trying to get a glimpse of what kind of photos were there to see.

The moment he got in the perfect spot to have a full visual over the content of the book, his entire frame froze in that position, eyes fixed in surprise at what he could only recognize as photos showing a young human child and two young adults too. 

There was some confusion at the strange sight, but then he got a clear look over the boy and he recognized him for whom he truly was.

Matt Newcastle was a happy kid during his childhood years, the bright smile and the overall excitement displayed by his younger self was more than enough to point this out to Randal. 

The closeness the young boy was sporting with his parents, two normal individuals, made it clear that their bond was as indivisible as the one he, Mora and Alej held for Diana.

It would have been a nice discovery, the pleasant notes of the childhood of his friend would have been a fun topic to have for breakfast… if not for the fact that the young man had lost his parents because of that car accident. 

He tensed a little as he recovered from the surprise, the Prime walking back to his usual seat and taking rest there.

Green eyes slowly lifted off from the ‘amusing sight’ and back to Randal, his mother blinking in brief surprise. “Oh, I didn’t see you, Randy and-” She sighed. “Good morning.”

He nodded. “Good morning,” The young man replied quietly as his stare set once more at the half-closed book. “I see that you got the… interesting ‘read’.”

The woman blinked again, this time glancing for a moment right at the photo-book and then to her son. Her smile not faltering at the strange comment. 

“Just something that I got from a friend of mine,” She mused with a purring hum. “Did you know that Matt hit a growth spurt at 15? You should see how much he got taller there-”

“ Mom,” Randal interjected with a stronger voice. “I… why do you have that? Why?”

There was some silence, the woman’s green eyes displaying numerous emotions at once, from confusion to shock, from mortification to calm. It was a flurry of feelings that felt oddly wrong for the occasion and yet… she sighed.

“ Just wanted to see how Matt was when he was but a child,” She explained with a careful tone. “Just a silly curiosity as a tired old mother.”

…

“ Mom, I-” He felt his voice faltering for a moment, unsure if going for something blunt would really muster any proper answer over her sudden behavior. “Mom, Matt isn’t-”

“ Don’t finish that dummy sentence, Randy.” The older Prime interrupted with a huff. “I understand that you can think of that by the way I care for him, but I don’t see him as a replacement to my Morita.”

The frown from the woman was enough to get an embarrassed and shocked look out from the Collie, the young man lowering his stare at the table at being counter-called out and… he frowned himself. “But then, why the picture book and-”

“ I don’t see him as a substitute to Mora, Randy,” Diana reaffirmed with a sterner tone, her eyes narrowing now dangerously at her son… before softening up as a sigh left her lips. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t consider him part of the family.”

Brown eyes flickered at that continuation. “Part of the family?”

She shrugged. “I’m unsure myself about it, but I guess that Matt has turned in a frequent sight and… he had been helpful around, supporting the two of us.”

The words failed to truly render justice over the positive improvement, but Randal decided to not press her about this. Rather, he decided to question more about the position the fellow young man held in his mother’s heart.

“ So, you think of him like the other workers we had?” He questioned more. “You were keen to say just a few years that those had been part of the ‘family’ too-”

“ Our family,” She replied without hesitation in her tone. “The one where you, Mora and Alej are my children and...” The woman didn’t finish that sentence, her words failing to continue the line of thought.

But the Collie didn’t need to listen to the final bit to understand what was going on within Diana’s mind. 

While it might be true that Matt wasn’t becoming a replacement to the absent Mora, that didn’t mean that the attention given to him by the older Prime was still strong and the kind he had only seen when dealing with him and his other siblings.

“ Mom,” Randal sighed but decided to go ahead with his question. “Why do you consider him as such?”

She blinked at him, her eyes finally showing some doubt about replying to that specific query but, instead of prolonging the current silence, the woman sighed and brought up a sad smile.

“ When he grabbed me when I was having one of my _ moments _ , Matt…” Diana closed her eyes, a tired look flashing by her face. “Matt had looked so much scared, so much afraid of the fact I had been in pain and… I couldn’t help but think of how familiar it was.”

She hummed, the book now closed and set on the table.

“ When I had my first _ moments  _ back when I was still alone and dealing with Las Lindas with my remaining staff, the few workers around me when it did happen were quick to have me placed on a safe place and to call an ambulance to see me checked,” The woman explained, with a low tone. “I had been happy to see that they had been so caring of my conditions and… that wasn’t what had happened with Matt.” She interrupted quickly, her lips forming a thin line.

“ When Matt came to help me, I could see something that I hadn’t seen in my workers’ expressions and manners, something that I saw only in another occasion,” She commented, glancing back at Randal. “Do you remember when you first saw me suffering with the illness?”

The question was a punch he hadn’t seen coming his way, his eyes went wide for a moment, hesitant to reply for a second or two before he actually tried to give a response to that.

“ I had expected it to be strong but...” He blinked, remembering vividly that moment. “I hadn’t thought it to be  _ that  _ strong. I hadn’t thought that… you were suffering that much.”

She smiled happily at that concern he was showing and she nodded. “Indeed. And that is what I saw in Matt’s eyes back when he helped me.”

… “ What?”

“ When he pulled me up from the floor and I regained some consciousness before fainting, I saw something rather unique and particularly connected to my children,” Diana paused, her sigh showing some calm after the struggle she had in explaining the previous bits. 

“ It was the look of fear for my well-being, he was so afraid and so surprised by the pain I was in that he seemed ready to collapse himself too,” His mother’s smile widened a little. “I suspect that the fear itself was what truly got him to ignore the pain he gained from that moment, why he didn’t feel ‘much’ out of it when I asked about it.”

It had been a recurring moment of curiosity for the woman, the reason behind the human’s lack of intention to reveal the suffering he had shared with her. 

Even Randal had been confused by the strange uneasiness the young man had when he asked himself, getting only some curt reply back that didn’t felt genuine.

“ But I have to ask you this, Randy,” The woman continued without hesitation. “Would it be bad if I considered him as your new brother?” She asked bluntly, getting a little embarrassed frown from her son.

“ I-I mean, it wouldn’t be right if-”

“ Would you?” She pressed on. “I’m asking to you. You’ve shared the floor, you both seem to be in a rather friendly relationship and I know that you have been quite at ease around him-”

“ Okay,” The Collie finally snapped softly. “I  _ might _ consider him something of a sibling but- I don’t feel that I’m sure about it and-”

“ Would you mind if I considered him as another child? Like I did with Alej?” The pressure was piling up much to Randal’s discomfort. “Would you-”

“ N-No, I wouldn’t mind if you did,” He finally admitted, snorting and shaking his head at the surreal predicament. “I know that you… mean well, mom. But I don’t want you to do strange things-”

“ Good morning!” The new chirpy voice interrupted without notice, the Collie almost jumping at the sudden presence of the human. 

Matt was just walking through the doorstep with a cheerful expression plastered on his face, his body seemingly relaxed and his mind unaware of the discussion between the two Primes.

“’ Morning, Matti.” Diana greeted back with a renewed smile, her eyes brightly shining as she stared at the approached young man. “I hope you are ready for today’s lunch.”

“ I think I am,” He replied absently as he moved behind the woman and right by the stoves. “So, what can I prepare for you all today?”

Randal frowned at the question and was about to jump in to help, but his mother proved to be quicker. 

“ Could you fix me a cup of coffee?”

“ Sure thing, ma’am.” He nodded back with a smile.

The human started to meddle around as he started to prepare the beverage, unaware that Diana wasn’t going to let waste of the opportunity afforded by the photos she currently had in her hold.

“ By the way, Matt,” She started with a subtly-teasing tone. “I wanted to ask if you ever had some… accident with icicle back when you were a child.”

The young man was still distracted, but the light frown on his face said that he was still paying enough attention to understand what he just heard. “Well, I kind of did, but it was a silly thing-”

“ That saw your left canine chipped,” The older Prime interjected with a little amused smile. “Seriously, I thought that you would have been a wise child back when-”

The woman didn’t have time to finish as, once the young man had the coffee jug set and preparing, he spun around and frowned deeply at the suspiciously detailed episode. 

His lips parted, ready to ask how the woman knew about this unfortunate case when his stare fell on the familiar picture-book being hold close by Diana.

He blinked once, then twice and-

“ Diana, where did you get that?” He asked with a neutral tone, his frown hardening for a moment, the woman smiling as she turned to stare at him.

“ That’s a secret~.” She replied bravely, the frown deepening even more but she hardly seemed to be minding it.

“ How-” He stopped himself, confusion passing through his composure at that cheeky response. “This- Diana, where did you get this and why?”

The woman giggled at the reaction. “A friend of mine and… why shouldn’t I be curious about my worker’s cute childhood?” The Prime pushed back with a smug look, the action causing the human to pause and blink once again.

“ Really? Nothing else?” He asked again, his skeptical tone manifesting as the woman hummed positively.

“ Yep and,” She opened the book and  _ turned it to Randal _ . “Randy dear, can you tell me what you can see from this photo in particular?”

The Collie was surprised by the sudden request, but he complied as he found himself staring at a rather young Matt, the boy being younger compared to the other photos he had seen, maybe a toddler.

“ I t’s Matt wearing an… onesie?” The first bit of his brain revealing the content of the image causing a sudden burst of panic from the human.

“ N-No wait, Randy that-”

But it was too late as the Prime’s eyes widened as he finally realized that the Onesie was animal-themed and… it was a dog-themed one. A Collie, to be specific.

He tried to hide the blush returning strongly on his face with his hands but the red reached for his whole face, bringing up his reaction to the world there to see. 

Matt had his jaw dropping at the sudden embarrassing moment, while Diana let herself go to a fit of giggles and laughs.

In her mind, even though Randal would deny it for a little longer, that was the quintessential situation only two siblings would endure. And that was being embarrassed by their parent with their old photos.

* * *

With two days in advance, having her schedule reprogrammed to fit this important visit had proven to be easier than expected much to Alejandra’s (and mostly Tootsie’s) relief, giving the woman the chance of finally getting to reconnect with Diana Linda.

She had long ditched the idea of using her business car to reach the farm, knowing full-well that the little town’s roads hardly allowed the passage to vehicles like the common ones in urban cities and other major settlements.

Thus the businesswoman had been mindful of telling her close assistant about the fact that to reach Las Lindas, they would have had to walk through the town and right up to the farm itself. The younger girl had been eager of this, showing little to no issue in having to go for that long walk and…

Her enthusiasm proved to deflated quite easily when they managed to get through the whole place. 

While the train station would have allowed them to cut down a large section of the walk, the fact that it was expensive and somehow an unreliable system to go there were enough factors to have Alejandra think strategically for the trip.

The Mouse Prime was winded by the experience but she endured it pretty-well considering how it was her first time doing these many steps around, the spectacle-wearing woman faring a little better as the habit of making long walks from her childhood home to Prism were still fresh on her body and memory. 

They stopped for a moment as they ended up reaching for the small house that existed right in front of the growing plants and flowers that were restlessly worked on by the only worker at the farm, blue eyes studying carefully the caring and the ministrations administered for the various vegetables here for here to see.

From a careful standpoint, she could see some issues with some of the visible products, but the overall quality was still decent enough to allow good revenue from the selling of those at the local market. 

Her mind picking up how the nativity of these plants influenced some of the clients to trust more those products compared to the ones sold by external businessmen.

The close-minded state of some people in the countryside parts of Gossamer was one of the main reason why her company had been having issues to properly start and make the grand profits, an embarrassing situation that had been fixed with some trials for her patience.

Time had passed but progress had been made to an affordable degree, allowing her to properly launch her activity and gain momentum by the sudden appearance in the world. 

And now Alejandra was proudly rising to greater heights the more days passed. It was just like she had promised back to her father, the sweat, blood and determination had all paid off as the young woman had finally gained a strong position with her organization.

With a cautious smile, Alejandra approached the familiar porch and the entrance door. She blinked as she lifted her closed fist up and pushed her knuckles onto the wood, knocking at the door three times.

She waited, backing away a little as Tootsie stood by her side, curiously waiting for something to happen and… something did happen. 

Something quite unexpected, but also not, she corrected herself with a blink.

The door opened and the one that answered her was… 

The Collie Prime blinked in surprise, a mirthful smile on his face as Alejandra lost some moments in shock and awe at the sudden growth spurt Randal had gone through in the last few years. 

Gone was the skinny and little Randy, now the slightly more buffed fellow seemed to have gained some more hair and some muscles from his time in college.

“ Alej!” He greeted cheerfully, her body easing at the fact that it was still his voice. The warm and relaxing one that used to keep her safe back when she was just a child, the sureness being a strong and portentous motivation to keep from falling during the shy moments of her childhood.

A smile crept in as they both shared a quick, but rather tight embrace. The young man nuzzled on her shoulder while the young woman let her chin touch his own. She blinked, the warmth being so familiar that she felt the need of fall asleep.

Maybe by the shadow created by the trees just by the orchard, to close her eyes and-

Alejandra snapped out of that little reverie as the hug ended, the sleepiness vanishing slowly but the sensation of nostalgia lingering even after it ended. She smiled and nodded.

“ It’s good to see you too, Randal.” Her attempt to sound formal and polite backfired as her tone treacherously allowed her genuine happiness at the encounter, causing the Collie to sport a brighter smile. “A-And I brought with me a trusted associate of mine, this is Tootsie Roswell.”

The blonde nodded and had her violet eyes upon the young man. “I’m Tootsie.” She repeated, a little smirk on her face.

“ And I’m Randal. Randal Hawthorne.” He presented himself happily, nodding at the two as he made a step back towards the door. “Lunch is almost ready and mom is sure waiting to see you-”

The young woman tensed up at the mentioning of the kind woman, taking a step forward and interrupting the Collie mid-sentence. 

Randal blinked at this, confused for a moment before accepting the sudden uneasiness. “I guess you truly want to see her...”

Quite the contrary, she would have replied at that point, right now what she truly would have wanted to do is give a faux reason to skip this meeting and avoid herself the painful trip down memory lane.

Yet she silently entered the house behind the young man, Tootsie keeping close as Alejandra kept a steady place to where Randal was taking them to. The pattern of the house started to return to her mind, the extent of the rooms, the planimetry of the place resounding with her memories as she soon found herself taken right by the kitchen.

She paused by the doorstep as she noticed that there were two individuals already inside. The first one was the human, Matt Newcastle, seemingly concluding the tasks that required his utmost attention for the preparation of the important lunch, the young man was unaware of their presence as of yet.

But the other individual noticed once she came on sight. Diana looked… sick. 

Her fur was paler, there were some sleep bags below her green orbs of kindness and she was donning a sleep-wear rather than her usual yellow dress. Gone was the cheerful figure that would bring her the strongest bits of her willpower. On her stead, a tired being continued to live with this unknown illness.

Her mind was already trying to figure this out, whatever malaise had gotten the strong mother to appear so weak and fragile at the first sight. It was heart-wrenching, almost difficult to stomach even if it was merely staring at her.

“ Hello, Alej,” The kind lady greeted with none of the anger that had been there in her tone back when she had last saw her, gone was the animosity and the fury at the offer she had given to her.

But Alejandra didn’t reply at this, rather she silently walked up to the woman and, ignoring the surprised glance she now had on her face, the girl lowered a little to allow herself to pull  _ her mom _ in an embrace. 

It was sudden, even her own brain having some trouble understanding the suddenness driving her to this intimate action, yet memories and mind reminded her of her mother’s touch and scent. The sweet fragrance of roses… she almost slumped onto her, forgetting that the woman wasn’t as strong as she had been in the past few years.

“ _ I’m sorry, Dede, _ ” The younger Prime finally let go in a muffled whisper, loud enough for the motherly figure to hear and understand her truest form of guilt. The woman blinked and then squeezed her closer and softly.

“ That’s alright, dear.” The woman mentioned back with an understanding smile. “I got you.”

And with that, the little effort to bring up a genuinely-composed front that wouldn’t have let go anything of her usual work-mask was obliterated without a second thought.

For a brief moment, Alejandra Coldthorn, the leader of Alexandria Dairy, reverted back to the shier and happier Little Alej. The hug lasted a little longer and then the two parted away, both smiling and having some tears forming by their eyes.

Tootsie and Randal were silent over the scene, both seemingly happy for that little reunion, while Matt glanced at the situation with a little grin as he finished to fill the last plate for the guests and… the lunch began moments later.

They were all sitting around the table, with Randal, Alej and Diana having picked their usual seats while Tootsie had gone for the other end of the table and… Alejandra finally noticed that the human had picked the chair that Mora was known to use before-

Before she left without notice.

The young woman flinched at that distinct situation, the pain and the anger still fresh from that sudden departure and-

No, Alej thought to herself. The vivid irritation she had for Mora… can rest for now as she had more important things to worry about. Still, some curiosity about Matt rose from that curious placement and she decided to ask him a few questions.

“ You have been here for a while now, Matt,” The bespectacled lady mused quietly. “And from my understanding you sleep in the house.”

The young man nodded, his attention full taken by the query as it was being proposed slowly and-

“ Where do you exactly sleep?” She finally asked, curiosity dripping from her tone. “I reckon that the rooms available are a few and some were once used-”

“ I sleep in Randy’s room.” The lightning-reply caught her surprised, her blue eyes widening at the comment and soon more curiosity dropped from that strangely-curt answer.

“ Isn’t that very little to accommodate another bed inside?” This time the question was directed at the Collie, the Prime blinking before he smiled widely.

“ We both share the floor,” He replied without hesitation, this time surprise turning into shock and the human facepalming at the dense response.

“ _ We are not huddled together _ .” Matt added with a sigh, still the general answer left some interesting scenarios to the two women’s mind. Especially for Tootsie, the Mouse Prime grinning madly as she was having trouble keeping her giggles to herself.

“ S-So you both ‘share the floor’, uh?” The blonde asked before busting laughing at the poor man being subjected to the innuendo, drawing a groan from the young man as he had no means to truly recover from that unfortunate but amusing position.

Randal, the ever-so naive Collie, was unaware of what he had done by allowing Alejandra’s assistant to know about this predicament, Alej herself knowing from a fact that the girl was quite eager about making impossible match-makings with the few hints of even the most-blatant innuendo.

Yet, just as the Mouse prepared for another teasing comment her jaws dropped as the small plate nearby her main food containing a big slice of cheese was lifted off the table and pulled away from her reach. She reacted too slowly, failing to grasp the ‘hovering’ snack and her violet eyes narrowed at the smug-looking human.

“ That’s mine!”

“ Your cheese privileges have been revoked,” Matt replied with a snort, getting a growl from the suddenly ‘angry’ girl ready to tackle him for the sake of some cheese.

“ Give it back,” She repeated again, her tone hardening. “Give it to me?”

He blinked. “Really, are you flirting with-”

“ I have two sandals to my reach and I’m not afraid of making use of  _ both _ of them!” Tootsie warned gaining a confused look from the human… before then grabbing her shoes and showing it as throwing weapons.

Maybe this was escalating to an uneasy degree, Alejandra mused as she moved to stop the war-gearing Mouse, while Randal tried to defuse the situation by having the young man to let go of the girl’s favorite food.

The situation took some time to solve, but after two solid minutes of talking them down, a ‘peace was struck’ between the two, with Tootsie apologizing for her aggressive teasing while the human returned the ‘precious treasure’ back to its ‘rightful owner’.

It had been difficult but somehow the entire predicament had gotten a laugh or two from Diana, the woman enjoying the show delivered by the four individuals as she quietly let all of this unfold before her eyes.

Alejandra smiled and nodded her way, getting another giggle as the lunch proceeded quite smoothly after that. The food was delicious, they shared some simple talks about their current lives and then, after two more hours of talking, the two important members of Alexandria Dairy were on their way back home.

Tootsie had to lean on her for support, her full belly and her tired mind putting her in an unwilling mindset regarding doing the whole walk back to the car without some assistance, something that Alejandra proved to give without much of a comment.

They weren’t doing anything wrong… okay, maybe there could have been some  _ minor issue _ about where the Mouse was holding onto but the overall visit had proved to be beyond successful and exceeding by a massive margin her expectations.

It had been a good way to reconnect and… to let go of the burden created by the fact that she had been devoting a major part of her daily life to her important job. 

And while she couldn’t take any vacation any time some for the sake of keeping track of their current growth, the idea of going to relax somewhere, even there at Las Lindas, felt like a positive idea to apply when time would be kind enough to her.

But now? Now Alejandra was going to return back home and- 

First, she would have to actually drop Tootsie to her flat, possibly put her to bed even though she was  _ touching her quite eagerly. _

Alejandra sighed tiredly as she continued with her walk back to the car. A small smile creeping once more on her face as she felt the stress disappearing, the tiredness washing off from her as she thought of only one thing.

Once again, she had someone to ask advice to and be reminded of better, simpler times and now things would surely become better from now on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Lifting Alej's hopes of a bright future a little? She had to have a pedestal to fall from once things escalate and... things will escalate."
> 
> "Little thought over Diana's attachment to Matt? I've been thinking of this for a while now and I don't wish to have the MC replace anyone. The MC represents a fresh perspective over the story, the new reader that ventures inside a world that has yet to fully unfold. In a sense 'The Golden Month' is a tutorial for what is going to come and... the sequel will have numerous stories connecting together, only a difficult fate and an uncertain ending awaits the saga."
> 
> You know, I was tempted to not jump in the wagon with this little speech of yours... but I've to ask. There are two versions to this story, a censored and uncensored one. 
> 
> "...Yes?"
> 
> When are we getting some juicy scenes? C'mon, readers must be waiting to ask that and-
> 
> "Two to three chapters from now. It will be a little unexpected surprise, one that only 'briefly' touches a possible relationship but nothing meaningful happens from that."
> 
> Awww- Wait, you mean pillow-talking or-
> 
> "No relationship out of that. Nope."
> 
> That shucks! But hopefully, I will manipulate things-
> 
> "No-"
> 
> YEAH~!


	9. Parallelism

Morning started rather smoothly in town.

Differently from the usual tasks about selling products to the market, I found myself busied with the groceries, the acquisition of some more fertilizer and maybe something to start fixing some of the broken bits by the barn.

I didn’t expect to complete the entire work, knowing that the state of disarray was just beyond anything I could accomplish in a month, maybe even two, and so I just settled to have it improved to an acceptable degree.

Nothing too big, but nothing negligible to notice.

Humming quietly, I ventured through the roads of the settlement, my focus fixed right to the little general shop sited by the town’s outskirts as I had yet to see if Minos had decided to go early at the pub or he had merely decided to stay home for today.

I didn’t actually have any means to contact him in case of emergency or anything important and… that sure did sound like a troublesome issue I had to solve at once.

Things had just been fairly complicated nowadays that some simple questions had just eluded my perception of things, but I suppose I could go and see if he was sick or anything related that if I hadn’t found the Prime back at the saloon. 

Maybe to cheer him up or something, he didn’t seem much of a lone wolf that much to deny some friendly talks.

Breakfast turned out to be enlightening over Diana’s improved positiveness, the woman even going as far as to once again try and get to help Randal with the kitchen but, just like it was usual as I knew after spending more than a week at the farm, the Collie would merely politely and carefully try to get his mother dissuaded from pursuing such attempt as to avoid any accidents in the kitchen.

Pouty Diana is a very cute one, but also incredibly grumpy given the proper chance.

Yet the chirpy greeting I’ve received once I arrived at the room where the two were and the overall happiness displayed by the lady of the farm was more than enough to assure me that yesterday’s lunch had influenced her a fair lot, her eyes almost glowing in amusement at the mere mentioning of Alej and Tootsie during our early morning bantering.

It was actually surprising from my perspective to see that the owner of Las Lindas had reacted well about the Mouse Prime’s presence, I could only guess that the blonde’s bubbly and eccentric personality had gained some intrigue and respect from the fellow woman. 

But that was but a polite assessment and if I had to be honest, I could hardly understand some of the lady’s curious quirks sometime.

Returning back to my current mission, the main task of the day proved to be incredibly complicated than I had initially thought as I had to overcome two grand issues:

1) The general shop was close to empty about products’ availability as it was the time of the month where things were close to be refurnished;

2) The shop itself lacked any major tools I needed to make some successful reparations before the end of the week;

Luckily enough, the necessary items in the list were all here to be purchased, the owner pointing out that a day or two more and I would have found anything of the kind that we required.

This second problem was what truly ended up being the most difficult to solve because the shop specialized to sell this kind of instruments was right on the other side of town and… it was the same where I had gone with Randal days ago to buy the tools required for the normal farm work.

I almost facepalmed at that brain-fart, but I was quickly going out of the shop with the grocery bags on tow and already walking towards the right place.

Time passed, I managed to avoid two crowded streets as the mayor had called for another town meeting about the general state of things, which technically wouldn’t matter to me as a citizen of the place right now as I was working just outside of town and didn’t live here.

So, ignoring the noises coming from the direction where the meeting was happening, I ended up finding the shop I was searching and I ended up entering moments before it closed for a premature end of the shift.

I thanked the owner profusely while also apologizing for the sudden necessity, ending up picking what I needed in a speedy manner, rushing at the counter to pay everything I’ve just taken and then I put the objects on the already-available bags on me.

Biding a good day to the grumpy clerk, I proceeded to walk towards the pub, seriously hoping that I could place the bags somewhere safe while I enjoyed some time there.

But just as I turned the corner to change street, I ended up bumping onto someone just a little shorter than me. The relative closeness of the impact allowed me to preserve my balance, but the same didn’t happen to the other individual which fell on his butt and stared up at me with a drunk-looking expression.

“ W-Wha- Oh,” Miles blinked in surprise while he massaged his butt, getting up slowly but wobbling in the process. “H-How’s doing… Mark?”

“ Matt,” I corrected him with a small smile. “And I’m doing well, Miles. Good morning and...” I frowned at the noticeable smell of alcohol on him. “Do you come from the pub?”

The young Prime looked awed, maybe he was unaware of the numerous signs about his drunk state. Really, what was going on with him and why he was trying to… drown himself in beer and only beer.

“ Oh- yes, I mean. I, uhh… the place is right now closed for the town meeting or… something like that.” He nodded to himself as if to remind to himself that, which got a perplexed look out of me as it further increased my growing concerns regarding his current conditions.

He might be just an acquaintance, but I couldn’t just ignore the fact Miles was still a good fellow deep down that wall of drunk.

Still, I was now aware that the saloon was closed because of the town-wide meeting and… that meant I had only one last place to visit before returning back to the farm.

I was about to tell goodbye to the young man but… then I realized how bad he looked right now by the way his eyes looked so unfocused and by the fact he looked close to collapse any moments now.

I remembered Taffy’s words about the cat-calling, but I could now see why the Bunny was seriously not nervous about the comments. Thinking well about my chances, I sighed and nodded to myself.

“ Miles, do you have anything to do right now?” I inquired calmly, thinking properly how should I formulate this attempt.

I wasn’t much experienced as the one that helps drunk-men, but rather I was mostly the drunk in need of help from time to time.

Maybe I could ‘reverse-engineer’ this to my advantage? Difficult but it could work with proper caution and wording.

The Prime straightened up at the query, blinking in minor surprise at it. “Like… now? I- N-No, I’ve nothing to- why?”

Quite the erratic guy too with some beer…

It does bring back some unpleasant memories. Even some recent ones.

“ I wanted to visit Minos,” I replied quickly, stopping just a moment as I noticed his confused look. “The big guy from the pub. I wanted to see if he was alright today and if he wanted to speak a little,” I lifted a little the bags. “But I’m also dealing with some weights and...”

“ You- You want to… have me help you with that?” Miles asked back with a small frown, a skeptical tone alternating with the slurry one relative to his current state. “W-Why?”

“ Just wanted to… have some company?” I shot back quietly and with some hesitation.

I mean how was I supposed to tell him that I just wanted to make sure he just didn’t wound up in some unfortunate situation while wandering alone. Still, I decided to go further and point out what I had noticed about his attitude.

The way he looked this much sad, his propensity to drink so early in the morning and… the lonely undertone I could see from his body language.

One couldn’t just ignore the clear call for help, but I was also aware that going in bluntly would only worsen things up rather than bring the much-needed help he required.

“ Plus, you seem like you would need to talk to someone,” I said with a well-paced voice, trying to not sound too much condescending or even pitying him over the matter.

I braced for a sudden refusal as I wasn’t much of a genius about emotional stuff of this caliber, but I saw him thinking about my suggestion and then he blinked, looking at me with some new lucidity.

“ Do… do I look that I need to… to talk?” Miles questioned slowly, eyes narrowing at me before slowly  _ nodding.  _ “I guess talking… would be nice.”

I paused just a moment to recoil from that tense situation, part of me surprised at the acceptance of support from my side but I was still cautious enough to not give up the tentative approach I had while speaking to him.

The prime had given me an opening, he didn’t certainly offer me his whole backstory all at once and so I had to be wary that he could close himself up at the wrong step I took.

I carefully handed him the lightest of the cargo and started to walk right where I knew Minos generally lived, this section of the town being quite nearby where we were and the walk proved to be shorter than I had initially thought.

Still, I managed to talk a little with the younger fellow and I got some glimpses of what could have happened to him and why he had decided to come here of all places rather than stick to the urban scenario.

Miles had dropped out from college, specifically from the prestigious Prism University. 

The establishment was considered top-notch education and was sited right in the capital of the continent, yet I was still unaware of the true reasons behind his quick departure and the guy had yet to explain what could have gotten him so angry at himself.

And while I had very little to work with, I could see the familiar bitter touch of self-disappointment now that the young man gave me the chance to look at it and… I was a little surprised to notice the curious amount of similarities about our not-so different stories, how I could see myself in some of his bad decisions and the aftermath he was experiencing.

While I had gone through with my studies, unhappily but determined to make my parents proud for the last achievement they had supported me to the very end, the paper I then received was almost as quickly forgotten as it was given to me. 

I remember ditching the idea of making use of the degree for a prosperous offer for my life, just for the sake of ignoring the painful memories that were even now latched to it.

People could easily condemn this decision of mine as foolish and excessive, to leave a well-paid future for some unhealthy attachment to the past, but logic and common sense weren’t something that played strongly against my stubborn self about that specific detail of my life.

A point where that wound was still bleeding and hurting the more I thought about the matter.

I ended up seeing guilt too, regret coming close too but I finally saw something that I too had to endure during my first few years spent living alone and isolated from the world. It was always there, nagging and reminding me of my current predicament.

It whined and it huffed, it gnawed and then kept quiet in proper times.

It was clear to me that, just like I felt back then about the sudden change in my past life, Miles didn’t want to go back to his previous time at Prism. 

He either didn’t have the luxury to do that or something powerful within him had him set to follow this lonely path, which made him even more regretful and sorry for ‘lacking the strength’ to consider the matter properly.

A messy road was in front of him, one that would bring him some undeniable distress and pain but I was perfectly aware that he wouldn’t suffer if someone decided to stick around to help him in the looming challenges.

But would I dare to go that far for Miles? Even though I couldn’t exactly leave him alone about it, I wasn’t certainly giddy of going down that route once again. May it be as an observer or… a helper.

Still, I guess only time will tell if I can or not help him around. 

Maybe the Prime will miraculously recover and avoid things from escalating but that was just an empty hope of mine at best.

Once we reached the specific spot where Minos’ house was supposed to be, we were both graced with the curious sight of a three-floors wood-made cabin that looked as tall as it was large.

I remembered the Bull mentioning that the house was bigger than his own needs but to see it by myself… I could see the issue the man would have with so much space left for him to use.

Miles’ jaws had dropped low and his golden eyes were directed at the size of the place we were going to possibly enter soon. 

It was an amusing sight for sure but I was just too focused on reaching the doorbell and-

**Ding Dong~!**

I retreated my index away and we were standing by the porch when we started to hear footsteps approaching, the wood floor creaking as soon the door opened to show Minos. A sweaty, sleeveless shirt-wearing Minos that seemed to have gone for three to four consecutive marathons.

His red eyes widened in surprise as he noticed our frames and a small smile appeared on his tired face. “Oh, hello Matt-” He then looked at the wobbly Cat. “And Miles?”

The younger Prime waved back, while I sighed and nodded. “He helped me bringing the bags and… I see that you decided to spend the day indoors?”

He shrugged. “Wanted to catch up with some training and I see that you didn’t go to the pub.” He shot back with a blink.

“ There is a town’s meeting,” I pointed out, smiling a little more. “So, you actually train?”

“ Only once or twice in a while, nothing much,” Minos admitted with a simple sigh, then he blinked. “Still, is this a courtesy visit or-”

“ Normal visit to give you some company,” I interrupted him with a nod. “Felt like I could have visited by now since you know where I live.”

He didn’t look annoyed by the situation, rather the Bull seemed flattered if not embarrassed by it.

“ I-I suppose it’s fine,” He replied slowly. “I should have invited you earlier but I think it just passed over my mind.” He paused just a moment, then he made way. “Please, do come in.”

I smiled and nodded. “Thank you,” I said quickly in return before glancing at the confused Miles. “And I think our new friend here need some rest by the couch.”

The Cat looked right back at me with a frown. “I- I thought that it was only bringing the b-bag-”

“ That was the case… until you started to look like you are going to faint from the alcohol,” I finally admitted with a grimace. 

Seriously, the wobbling had gotten so bad that he seemed really ready to crash down while walking and that would put him to some dangers since we were pretty distant from any frequented roads from town. 

“ How much did you drink this time?” I also decided to ask, hoping that the answer would be something similar to one or two cups.

The young man blinked. “Twoooooo...” He prolonged the word for a while, then he flinched and gave the proper answer. “Bottles.”

‘ Dangit Miles.’

“ B-But it can’t be that bad,” The Prime tried to assure, looking at Minos for help. “R-Right?”

The Bull snorted. “You reek.”

The comment made him flinch again, but this time, after giving a quick sniff at his shirt and recoiling in disgust at the smell, Miles decided to accept the offer and follow inside the house.

Minos’ home was as big as it had appeared back outside, but I was mesmerized by the quality of the furniture and domestic appliances in display, some even going beyond the level of technology I was more accustomed too.

I was aware of the impressive advancement considering the two hundred years of difference, but I wasn’t expecting to be introduced to this predicament this soon or within the limits of this town.

We were taken to the comfortably-sized living room and Miles was quickly settled on one of the two sofas directed at the curious-looking TV, face drowning in one of the pillows as he groaned happily at the general comfort provided by the couch.

Just as I sat down on the same sofa, the little space left there allowed me to fit in just perfectly, I noticed that Minos hadn’t moved from the doorstep of the room, causing me to blink at him.

“ I have to… use the shower,” The Bull replied with a hint of embarrassment. “I know I should be more mindful, but you both arrived just as I finished with my training-”

“ Oh, then go ahead,” I replied back with a small smile. “I guess I could have planned things better and… I will keep an eye on Miles in the mean time.”

The Cat snorted before snuggling more his face on the pillow, the Bull accepting the response and disappearing around the corner, leaving just me, Miles and… the vast living room that contained much to see and think about.

And that was what I did to kill some time, my gaze wandering all around as I started from the half-empty libraries standing beside the TV, the large wood constructs having just a dozen or two of books in them and most of those were fantasy-related tomes.

Or at least I thought them to be fiction at first before realizing that some might actually be some real topics as, from what I could remember from Minos’ early explanation about the Emperor and the ‘Galactic War’, magic was a thing now in the universe.

The memo had yet to stick to my brain.

Soon my eyes moved away from the books and right to the glass table in front of the sofas. There were some newspapers folded one up the others, a used mug (which I was fairly sure once contained some coffee), and a remote.

I was tempted to see what kind of channels were around in the ‘modern’ TV, but then again I considered the circumstances and I was hesitant over turning on the device while Miles was trying to catch some rest. 

I glanced once again and just for a moment the feline young man, he was quiet but I couldn’t still hear any snoring out of him. He was resting for sure, but not sleeping at all, which wasn’t that bad yet it wasn’t a complete victory.

Finally, I noticed the small frame sitting by the small wooden table between the two couches and I took a peek at the picture, scanning the people in it.

Minos was standing by the middle, a surprisingly-shy smile on his face as he was being dual-hugged by two unknown Primes.

The first one was a male Prime with dark-gray fur and shoulder-length, curly black hair. He had green eyes and a big smile plastered on his face as he squeezed his arm on the Bull Prime’s neck.

The other one was a female Prime with long, slim horns curled backwards, soft-brown hair reaching down below her back and a pair of pink eyes. She was hugging close Minos’s arm while giving a kind but mirthful smile at the viewer.

There were some words written on the picture and I started to read them silently.

_ **Remember to call if in need of help, Grace and Kayin.** _

I blinked at their names and then connected them to their faces, my attention drawn at the interesting relations the three shared (possibly even now) and just as I continued to look at the photo, I heard Miles stirring in his position.

He yawned, his head lifting up for a moment and so did his upper body, his half-closed eyes looking around in a daze as if he was trying to find something important within the room. Then he stopped at me, he tensed up a bit and… lowered his glance at my lap.

“ Mhh,” The noise left his lips as he fell right in there, head turned up and staring at the ceiling as he fell asleep with a content smile.

My jaws had dropped low at that sudden interaction, my brain trying to understand what was going on, whatever I should have moved the Prime out of there as per Bro-Code’s rules but…

Then the purring began. At first it was soft-pitched and difficult to grasp, but then I started to notice the noise coming from Miles as the Cat Prime vibrated a little in his sleep.

...What?

I was tense but stuck still in that predicament, my mind failing to get a resolution out about what I was supposed to do in that exact moment.

It was a mix of ‘Oh God, that’s a thing?’ with a low-pitch because of the particularly cute moment and ‘what the heck?’ with a confused and concerned voice.

My musings were brief as, moments later, a certain Bull Prime ended up reaching back to the living room.

Minos was now wearing a half-sleeved shirt and a pair of gym pants. His hands were handling a towel on his head, finishing to fix his hair and the man stopped at the scene presented to him.

I opened my mouth, ready to explain the particularly-awkward positioning and reaction from Miles, but the Bull Prime graced me with a knowing smile and a chuckle.

There was no way I could recover from that, so I glanced at Cat and sighed.

‘ Dangit Miles!’

* * *

**~Minos POV~**

After a quick shower and the little amusing scene _ and _ explanation that Matt was forced to provide over Miles’ curious position, a two-hours long discussion ensued.

Normal topics, just like usual, the human didn’t stray too far with his comments, questions and replies, but Minos could easily see that something was now nagging the young man, something that hadn’t been there before he entered his home.

He was patient, careful to not bluntly try to get this strange shift in attitude during their bantering as it didn’t look to be a pressing issue considering the relative calm presented by Matt.

Then, after two hours of pleasant conversation, the human decided to finally ask what had been keeping him this much intrigued for some time.

“ By the way, I noticed the little photo with your friends here,” He said with a casual tone, eyes blinking at the frame. “Seems like you are rather close with them.”

The comment lacked anything suspicious or even remotely implying malicious intents driving it, so Minos merely nodded. “We are,” He admitted with a hum.

“ Then I bet you share some fun stories once in a while,” The young man continued with a genuinely happy tone. “I mean, to write it down on the photo-”

“ We had some issues with our schedules and I don’t wish to disturb them,” The Prime replied quickly and curtly, partly hoping that the topic could shift once again to something easier to deal with.

As much as Minos trusted the human about this kind of subjects, the real problem was that he wasn’t feeling ready to deal with putting to test the integrity of his current excuses over the matter.

But just as he had also expected from the young man to do, Matt blinked in surprise at his quick answer.

“ So you’ve been ‘unable’ to call them because they are… busy?” He asked while blinking skeptically at this alibi, the Bull Prime sighing and nodding.

“ I will call them once I’m sure they are free to-”

A loud sigh left the human’s lips as the young man had his eyes set on him, a dull look plastered on his face as he began interjecting. “How long didn’t you talk with them- or better, how long they ‘have been too busy to call’?”

Minos almost flinched at that call-out, but he managed to preserve himself from giving away his little hesitation out. “A while.”

Matt blinked in response, looking even more interested on the matter but also suspicious over the wording of the answer.

“ A while?” The human asked curiously and looked ready to continue along the line… but then he stopped and sighed, eyes moving away from the Bull Prime and at the ceiling.

“ Look Minos, you and I are good friends and I will not press you over this subject if you don’t want to,” He began with a serious tone, his voice paced slowly as he seemed to be putting out words carefully for some reason. “But since I’m a good friend of yours, I think I have to offer at least some support in the form of you giving me at least the reason of what is going on and in exchange I offer you a suggestion, one that you may accept or not.”

“ What if the reason is dumb?” The Prime asked quickly, almost too quick for his own tastes.

The young man shrugged with a lazy smile on his face. “Then I guess I will have to find a solution to this ‘silly’ situation,” Matt admitted with a small smile and Minos let out a sigh as he thought about the matter once again.

It wasn’t too imposing nor too invasive as a request, but the Bull was uncertain if it would truly be a good idea to try and reconnect with Kayin and Grace. 

The two were enjoying their happiness within their family and… he wouldn’t want to be the one to put obstacles with his own dilemmas.

Decisions, decisions…

In the end, the Prime sighed and nodded at the human.

“ Grace and Kaiyn… they are married and with children,” He started to explain, hiding the whole ‘Crest’ and ‘former Empire Knight’ backstories for the two individuals. It wasn’t important regarding the topic and, the lest knew about it, the easier their lives would be. 

It’s been years now that they had enjoyed some quiet anonymity and it was for the best that they were left as ‘normal people’ rather than sensible targets of the Empire’s remnants.

It would take just a whisper about their identity to the wrong person and… Minos would have had to then don his old armor and help them out.

“ They had helped me for several years in the past and, now that they have their own responsibilities, I don’t wish to create them any issues.” The Prime concluded, waiting for a reaction from the young man.

Matt hummed and seemed to think about the subject for a while, spending some time trying to elaborate what he should tell or not.

Then he blinked and nodded, seemingly ready to pass on his very advice over the matter.

“ I think your reason is more noble than silly, Minos,” The human began with a sigh. “You wish for them to have some free time to balance out their own responsibilities and you think that asking for help might seem like a… drain on them.”

Minos slowly nodded as the rehearsed version of his plight was mostly correct but the young man was far from done with his thoughts.

“ Still, I think there is also a little selfish detail you are missing,” He admitted with a calm tone, his hand scratching his chin as he continued to think as he spoke. 

“ You are forgetting that, despite the fact they might want to enjoy some peace once in a while because of their lifestyles, you are also putting them in a state of worry by not calling them once or twice in a while, and so they are still suffering because of this behavior.” The young man asked quietly, a curious look displayed.

The Bull Prime frowned at the words, conflicting over his reaction at this strange accusation. It felt odd to hear but, for some reason, it felt also incredibly… correct.

“ State of worry?” His perplexity, driven on by the fact that he was still unsure about what the human was talking about, dripped off from his words and the human seemed to notice it by the way his following reply was displayed.

“ Hypothetically speaking, if what you are doing with them ended up happening to one of the two, going ‘radio silence’ for how long you have gone, how you would feel about it?” 

The suggestion was surprisingly curious to consider and even though it would be difficult for it to happen as of how things were going now...

Minos started to think about the case, about either of his friends going missing for almost a month, giving him no word about their current whereabouts, whenever they are fine or not and… the Prime felt surprisingly concerned about the situation ever happening.

It would have been dramatic if Kayin or Grace went ‘missing’, his mind trying to assure him that he wouldn’t have rushed to the possible rescue but he would go that far for his close friends.

He would have been at least concerned over the topic, maybe even gone as far as to pester Ambar to get more info about the predicament itself and then- 

The Bull stopped with this line of thoughts as he could now see what the human was alluding too with this hypothetical scenario.

He could see Kayin being curious maybe even interested over his current state to call Ambar, but Grace would have been the one to go through hell and back to verify if Minos had been fine or not, just for the sake of their friendship.

A heart-warming idea that was balanced by the quirkiness the woman would display when her friends were put close to any possible danger. And that wouldn’t be a good sight to see unfold before him.

“ You mean that, by keeping myself so distant from them, even for good reasons-”

“ You are still going to worry them about your current self,” Matt interjected quietly. “And that would create them a continuous concern over your well-being, something that I know you don’t wish to cause to them.”

The Prime nodded quickly at that, of course he wouldn’t want to hurt them in any sort of way and… he paused a moment to properly understand the full extension of the predicament.

He wondered if the town would have survived the worried concerns coming from the Crest of Love herself. Possibly not-  _ surely not. _

“ Then… I will see to contact them,” He concluded with a nod. “Maybe just before lunch or-”

“ I hope you do that,” Matt said with a small smile. “But alas, I think it’s time for me to go and…” He glanced at the still-purring Miles with a blank stare. “I’ve to drop this Cat off to his home before it gets too late for lunch.”

But just as the young man started to shake the younger Prime awake, Minos stood up from his seat and waited for the two to stand up too. The human noticed the action and frowned at him.

“ Wha-”

“ I will help you with the bags,” The Bull stated with a nod. “I think you can’t deal with these and Miles.”

He looked ready to protest, maybe even try to appeal to some logical fact to deter the sudden offer of help, but soon their attention was taken by Miles as the Cat prime lifted off from the lap.

“ Ugh… that was… terrible,” He groaned, hand going to his face as he tried to break through the minor hangover he was suffering. Finally, his golden eyes blinked open as he started to remember what had happened until now and then… he tensed.

Slowly turning around, the Cat stopped to notice the stare of the two men in the room and he blinked again as his memories continued to crash onto his brain. 

“ So… nothing happened?”

The human frowned. “You were expected something from us?” He asked back, the Prime appearing a little nervous at the curious tone.

“ Kinda, yes.” He admitted curtly and honestly.

“ Well,” Minos interjected. “I think that sleeping on Matt’s lap for two hours was ‘something’.”

There was silence at first, Miles slowly taking in this comment as he looked right down where his pillow had been, eyes going wide open as a horrified look appeared on his face.

“ You- I-” He blurted, his brain failing to properly grasp what had happened, but the human was quick to jump and interrupt him.

“ You slept staring up at the ceiling and  _ on my leg _ , not centered on my lap,” Matt said dryly, trying to appease the confused young Prime. “No fun business has happened.”

“ H-How do I know that y-you are telling the truth?” He shot back with a suspicious tone.

“ Other than the fact we are both dressed and that you have literally paralyzed my leg with your constant purring?” The comeback ended up gaining a blush out of the Cat, causing him to pause in the exchange before sighing in defeat at that steely response.

“ So… nothing really happened?” He asked again, this time looking quite unsure over the topic.

“ I spent some quality time talking with Minos while you napped a whooping two hours,” The human replied, getting a nod from Miles. “No, nothing happened to you.

“ I guess that was it but… now what?” The feline asked with some curiosity, getting a nod from the young man.

“ We get back to town and I leave you by where you live, then I will go back at the farm.”

“ And I will come too-”

“ No, you are not,” Matt interjected tiredly and determinedly, frowning at the Bull. “You are going to think about the proper words to tell to ‘them’, you promised before lunch.”

The Prime huffed in annoyance at the refusal but ended up nodding as he took the two by the entrance door, with Miles picking up a little more bags as he had mostly recovered from the alcohol’s effects.

Soon the Bull was waving at the retreating duo from the porch, eyes fixed on them until they left his eyesight. Moments of quiet passed, but then the man entered back in his house, silently walking towards the living room and… towards the communication device connected to the TV.

It wasn’t something he was much adept to use to its fullest potential, but he was capable of making simple transmissions with other contacts connected to the system.

The phone number to the Ravenhurst’s home was already saved in the list and soon he inputted the code in the device.

The screen turned on, at first showing a black background with the words ‘ **Starting Connection...** ’ written on it.

It was a fleeting sight as soon the dark screen was replaced by… a kitchen. On the other side of the call was Kayin, the man looked to be partly busy with the pouty girl looking at him several inches shorter.

Joy, the youngest of the couple’s daughter, looked incredibly angry at her father for a brief moment before glancing at the monitor, her old man following her example and starting to greet the caller.

“ Ravenhurst family, how may I-” Green eyes widened in surprise as the Coyote Prime noticed who was calling. “Minos! It’s been… a month?”

The Bull almost sweatdropped at that sudden and blunt reaction, sighing and smiling a little as he greeted back the two.

“ Three weeks, Kayin and… good morning to you and little Joy.” He nodded their way, the girl puffing her cheeks at the nickname given.

“ I’m not little, Uncle Minos!” She shot back fiercely. “I’m fifteen!”

Which is little, he would have wanted to reply, but then again, he wasn’t here to tease the ‘child’.

“ Indeed? Forgive me, Joy, I can’t be quite forgetful nowadays,” He admitted with a faux shake of head, causing the teen to finally smile. 

“ Apology accepted, uncle… that is if you tell me why you didn’t call for almost a week-”

“ Joy-” His father tried to chide her but the girl merely huffed.

“ Uncle promised to call us regularly and he didn’t do that, it’s the least he can do to truly mean the fact he is sorry!” She replied quickly, her logical response getting a defeated sigh out of Kayin.

Minos blinked at that exclamation, now remembering that he had indeed promised to both Hope and Joy to call regularly just to keep in contact with the family. He felt shame and guilt building up at that sudden realization, enough to have him stall the reply for a while…

Unfortunately dragging up until another figure appeared in the room. 

Holding some bags filled with groceries, Grace hummed happily as she placed those on the small table in the kitchen, glancing at the rest of the family and approaching silently as she realized that they were talking with someone through the communication device.

Her sight fixed on the monitor, her jaws dropped the moment she noticed whom in particular was on the other side of the call, her entire body tensing up for a brief instant and… then the woman started to vibrate as she took a few steps forward.

“ Minos!” She said loudly and with a sickly-sweet smile, causing her youngest child and her husband to back away as the Crest stared intensively at the nervous-looking Bull Prime.

“ It’s been… a month, a month of you going into hiding for no apparent reason,” Grace continued with a growing tone, one that showed disappointment, irritation and a certain sense of anger.

There wasn’t much anger within the woman, but she could make up with some curious expressions that only she could pull and… those weren’t fun to be subjected to.

“ Three weeks-”

“ A month, Minos,” She interrupted with a tired sigh. “I tried to get something out of Ambar, but our ‘responsible’ High Prime knows how to make it difficult to get hold of her nowadays.” 

Truth be told, the Bear Prime was capable of making long lines of appointments become a social barrier for anyone she didn’t want to deal for some reason. 

It was something that Minos himself had seen happening right before his eyes, the Crest of Wisdom shamelessly and unabashedly admitting that it was something she had done for years now.

“ I wanted to spend some time away from Prism-”

“ You could have come here in New Boothbay, we would have taken you in and-” She tried to appease but the Bull Prime sighed.

“ I didn’t want to impose, Grace, and-” He explained, pausing a moment to let his shoulders sag a little. “I needed to spend some time alone.”

The woman blinked perplexed, Kayin finally approaching back to the screen with a curious look.

“ Time alone?” The former knight asked quietly. “Any specific reasons for that?”

Minos shrugged. “Just felt some time alone would help me a little and… I didn’t mean to miss up with the promise and-”

“ You still did, you big dummy,” Grace shot back with a huff, arms crossing below her bosom. “Think that Hope was a little sad to not be able to spare some words with her favorite uncle?”

Ouch, that did actually hurt.

“ I had to think what to say and I lost some time-”

“ A month.” Kayin pointed out unhelpful.

“ Three weeks of thinking-” Minos tried to continue, but the woman sighed as she glanced at him with a suspicious frown.

“ Who did tell you to call us?” Grace finally asked, lifting her eyebrow curiously.

There was silence, his jaws dropping in shock at that surprisingly-correct statement. “W-What?”

“ Minos, if there is something I know about you is that when you are indecisive over something, you would need someone to tell you what to do over any big question.” The woman explained rightfully, this little habit of his having been perfectly noticed by her during their time together while the War was still raging on. “So… who got you to finally speak with us?”

There was a pause that lasted a few seconds, then he decided to come out clean.

“ It’s one of the friends I’ve made here in this town,” The Bull admitted honestly. “Someone that I’ve known for a little more than a week.”

Grace blinked, a little teasing smile appearing on her face. “Oh? A friend or a ‘friend’?”

“ Mom!” Joy exclaimed with a little blush. “Can you not?”

The woman giggled. “Sorry, sweetie, but mommy has to know if your uncle is finally trying to-”

“ It’s a friend,” Minos replied curtly. “A worker at one of the local farms.”

Kayin hummed. “Tough job being a laborer for a farm. Is it one of those big companies or-”

“ A family-owned one, not that much big.” The Bull interjected. “He is the only worker here and I sometime join him while he spend some task by the local market.”

“ Alone with that kind of job?” Grace commented with some surprise. “Isn’t that a little too much even for a Prime.”

“ It seems so to me too,” Minos agreed, remember how tired the young man would look like after a normal day of work.

“ Still, I bet he has to be a strong Prime,” The woman guessed. “By the way, which kind of is he?”

More silence, this time a little briefer than before. “He isn’t a Prime.” He replied, gaining some surprise on the other side.

“ A human, uncle Minos?” Joy asked with renewed curiosity. “But mom and dad said that it wasn’t a good work for a Prime… so why would he do that?”

Minos hummed. “He promised the owner that he would try and help her out with her farm,” He reckoned with a calm voice. “And he has been working for her for more than a week now.”

“ That’s some determination,” Kayin whistled at that. “Still, I bet that he has to have ask for help, especially from you.”

“ Actually, it’s usually starting from me,” He replied with a blink. “I’ve to ask to help him with some of the things he has to do and he would always end up wanting to pay me for that.”

“ Some people can’t just accept friends working for them, Minos,” Grace explained with a small smile. “I think he cares enough to not ‘exploit’ your friendship for labor.”

Then the woman’s face let out a serious expression. “I hope that he actually takes care to not overwork himself.”

The admission was legitimately concerning, something that made Minos’ eyes widen up a little as he realized that, while the human was mindful of not exerting himself beyond his limits in single tasks, he could easily forget to do the same with the overall daily routine.

Something that was worth to study properly with someone… maybe with Taffy’s help.

“ I will make sure he doesn’t and...” He smiled at the trio. “I think it’s time to conclude this call, there is lunch to do and-”

“ Hold up a moment, you big dummy,” The Gazelle Prime interrupted with a pout. “You think you can just call once and give us a little summary of what happened to you in this last month?”

Uh?

“ Tomorrow,” The woman nodded steely. “Around the same hour, I will call and you will explain ‘everything’ that has happened to you. Everything.” She ordered confidently. “Understood?”

He nodded slowly and tensely at the unexpected demand.

At this response, the Crest’s face softened and she gave a happy smile. “Good, then. See you soon, dummy~.”

“ See you tomorrow, Minos,” Kayin nodded at him with a sympathetic smile.

“ To tomorrow, Uncle!” Joy waved quickly at him and then the call collapsed, leaving Minos to properly understand happened in that call.

In the matter of a dozen of minutes, precious time that was devoted to the family he was surrogatively attached to, the Bull realized that while he wasn’t fully forgiven by the little mistake he made about not calling them and talking to them early on, he still managed to salvage enough to be able to recover from this in due time.

Now that this was settled, his next thought went to Matt Newcastle.

Grace’s comment was legitimately putting him to a singular worry, one that stemmed from the fact that the young man fairly devoted to his job, maybe a little too much and…

Overworking was still a non-negligible issue that could still impact on his life and strain it subtly but radically.

This is why, instead of starting to prepare some lunch, Minos decided to leave his house for a while to try and do something important before he lost the opportunity to elaborate some plans about it.

Taffy had to be around and… maybe she can help him out about the matter. Hopefully, something will come out before the end of tomorrow and… Matt would receive some proper rest just for that day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> I commend AND condemn you for writing this much with two burned thumbs.
> 
> "It's nothing- generally, I don't make use of those and-"
> 
> Spacebar, dots and commas.
> 
> "I'm careful-"
> 
> Like Miles is by unconsciously ending up to sleep in the couch owned by his best-friend's surrogate uncle, the best friend that he hurt by running away-
> 
> "You know, you are terribly good at this-"
> 
> Look, just pass me your hands and-
> 
> "I'm fine, I've already applied some paste on 'em and-"
> 
> Let me take a look!
> 
> "N-No-"
> 
> YES! And by the way, lovely readers, next chapter will have the long-promised lemon~.


	10. Hopes of a Brighter Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This Chapter contains a Lemon. It’s advised to those younger than the legal Adult age to skip the portion when the next warning is spotted. Your discretion is advised.

A new day started at Las Lindas and it was sure going to be a unique one to spend.

That was something that Diana was as sure of as amused to say to herself because something fairly interesting and endearing was just happening a few hours after breakfast.

Two hours had passed by since Matt had gone to town either to set up the market to sell the products of the farm or to enjoy some time with the few friends he had gotten in town.

It was good to know that the young man was having good moments with others rather than staying shut in her house, to be broadening his new social life without too many issues along the road for happiness.

Yet, differently from the usual days, instead of the young man making his way back to the farm to make a full-day of work, she was bestowed with the sight of the lone Prime that the human had gotten to befriend first.

He sounded polite, his genuine expressions telling as much as his words were as he explained the reason behind his presence here today and why Matt wasn’t going to return until later.

A plan created mostly by the young woman that she had just heard about, a fine lady if the older woman had to credit as the idea was as interesting as amusing to listen to.

While the young human had been mindful to not over-exert himself in the single shifts, it was also true from a fair perspective that the hard-worker had been careless in balancing his sleep hours.

While Randal could afford to sleep until early in the morning because his work-load was easy to manage and mostly lessened by his mother’s attempts to make some things on her own.

Many of the attempts failed to even begin much to her chagrin, but she could at least get her son to not exaggerate with his cares, to get some rest once or twice in a while.

But Matt’s job was a little more complicated and draining, especially since he lacked the stamina to commit to such a difficult lifestyle because he was a human.

Still, the plan sounded truly intriguing to listen because of the simplicity but also ingenuity applied to it, giving it a grand chance of success considering the elements presented by the Bunny Prime.

With Taffy inviting Matt to stay by her apartment just for some hours just for the sake of some friendly bantering and plays, Minos managed to quickly ‘promise’ out an offer to replace the young man for the time the human planned to spend with the girl, the Bull’s efforts increased by the pressure exerted by Taffy herself on their mutual friend.

Matt was offered little opportunity to protest the dual front and, in mere moments spent discussing this new development, he was forced to capitulate to the two Primes.

Yet, despite managing to get him to surrender to their plans, the human pointed out something that was agreed by the two friends. Something that was subsequently asked by Minos when he reached out for the family’s home.

While Matt didn’t exactly have any issue with that, the problem was about the fact it was ‘his job’ that was supposed to be halted for the sake of the visit and, given the fact that there was an actual contract behind the activity, he would have to wait for Diana’s approval before making the call.

Something that was as surprising but also a little irking, mostly because the woman herself was aware that the contract wasn’t a legitimate one since it lacked many of the usual conditions applied to a standard work contract.

It had been something she had scribbled down with the help of her son, something that contained as much rights and duties as she remembered in that exact moment and…

She decided to ‘accept’ the situation and waited for Minos to call back to house where Matt was currently staying by.

Even though the sound was mostly muffled and reduced while the bulky man spoke at the other side of the call, the owner of the farm was mostly sure that she had heard some giggles and chuckles on from the receiving side.

Chuckles from the human, she connected quickly, he was really having fun away from the harsh work.

Her heart lightened at the image of the young man getting some time to relax instead of fully drowning himself within the work and…

She sure was going to enjoy the current opportunity bestowed by her by the power of ‘friendship’.

Sitting by the porch on her wood chair that Randy had placed for her, Diana Linda was smiling eye-to-eye as she continued to watch silently the hard-working Bull substituting the human for the shift of today.

Minos, the strong-looking Prime that was now investing his time to follow the instructions advanced by her son, had decided to ditch his simple half-sleeved shirt the moment it had started to get sweaty, three hours in the job.

A giggle had left her lips as a blush had appeared on her face at the unexpected but most lovely development in that new situation and she was certainly having some ‘fun’ in watching the good-looking fellow working at the farm.

Relaxing on her little chair, the pillow and the sheets given to her by her son providing further comfort as she truly enjoyed the delightful spectacle before her green eyes.

Yes, that was truly going to be a good day, she thought with a twitchy smile.

With sweat glistening his muscles and _his lovely abs_ , Minos just looked like a treat and she couldn’t help but giggle again as he would nod silently at Randal’s precise instructions for the job while the Collie offered him some water and a towel.

It was similar to how Matt had began, minus the ‘no shirt’ predicament that is, but she could easily remember the struggling the young man had to go through with the first day, how he ended up making some mistakes along the way, little ones that were fixed in the matter of a few minutes.

Diana sighed and hummed as she glanced at the slightly cloudy sky and started to remember when both Randal and Mora decided to try and do the farm-job together.

It had been a week-long experience that had started out as a challenge between Diana and her daughter and she had expected major issues at first but.

While there were some some bickering between the two over whom was ‘leading’ the other, that there were some amusing scenes between the two siblings about mishaps happen on the first few days… but the woman could also commend that there was also some growing unfolding with their decisions.

Mora was surely the one gaining most of the experience, Randy having previously helped the other men and women that worked at Las Lindas at the time.

But her Morita seemed to develop not only an interest but also a prodigious and natural capacity in administering their ‘budget’ without wasting the money allowed for anything superfluous or dangerous for their endeavor.

It was that very experiment that proved once and for all how Mora would have been more than a perfect choice to take over the farms when… she would be gone.

Another sigh, the humming had ceased abruptly and her lips were sporting a minor grimace at the thought of her deteriorating conditions, the final plight of her life.

She had been given the best estimations possible for her predicament and those had been incredibly disheartening to listen to when the doctor came and revealed those to her and only her how things were truly bleak for her.

Randal was only aware that the condition was weakening her and putting her to the frailest state possible rather than seeing her die.

But Diana was not showing any recovering from her illness, nor there were medicines strong enough to even stabilize her situation anymore.

Her eyes closed just for a moment and… in that brief instance of silence, she started to feel the weight of her whole predicament fall onto her back with the suddenness of an explosion, the burden almost too painful to bare once again and she couldn’t help but shudder at the trying times that were waiting for her and her broken family.

Randy was doing well with his life, the only one sticking around because of the circumstances allowed his presence here. She knew that some job offer had been given, that he had some contacts with people trying to hire him in some important task. Her baby boy was incredibly bright and well-prepared to have a proper job once his duties here were concluded.

Mora was still out in the world to try and find more about her father, unwilling to even consider a reconciliation from her or Randal’s part. Her Morita was strong but also as stubborn, if not more than, her mother and that was what truly messed any attempts to bring peace to this divided house.

Alejandra was just making tentative steps back to her former self. Little Alej was still there and waiting for some advice, something that the older woman was more than happy to provide because she was aware of the difficult and complex situation the girl was facing on her own. Diana was also aware that giving her the final lessons of a well-lived life were going to be difficult to provide without rushing things up and ruin everything once again.

But she didn’t want to mess up again, not with how little had been left of her golden age.

She couldn’t just allow herself to… fall apart once more before the uncertainty and to face again the fallout’s ugly face.

She just couldn’t afford it, she didn’t have anything left to fight with an eventual fall.

Diana felt tears forming, her eyes watering up and ready to unleash her sadness out for the world to see and witness.

Yet before she could break up in a sob, the woman felt something strange and odd caressed her skin, a soft and warm hand was now sitting on her shoulder and shaking her out of that horrible thinking that her feverish mind had subjected her too.

Moments passed and soon she was awake once again, this time her mind alarmed at the tension her body was facing in that exact moment.

Green eyes opening once more at the world and her attention once again shifting back to reality, the woman was quick to realize that she was now shaking a little after what she just experienced and that she had gone through a silent session of pain without catching anyone’s attention.

Minos and Randy were too far from the porch to notice, too distracted to see that Diana was now sweating and breathing heavily at the terrible development but… she was alright.

She gulped tiredly, her heartbeat stabilizing moments later as she used the sheets to remove the tears and the sweat on her face, unwilling to create any scene by displaying herself in such manner.

Then the woman remembered the strange sensation by her shoulder and glanced to the side… only to find nothing nearby.

The Prime was alone in that precise moment and yet she was sure that a hand had truly grasped at her, bringing her out from that seizure caused by her marks, the signs of a botched attempt to create a bright future for her family.

 _At least Mora was born sane and without any problem related to… that,_ Diana thought once more. That little luck being more than a good reminder of the happiness about her daughter’s birth.

With a bright memory washing over her brain, the woman felt finally freed from her little tiredness and she focused back on the curious phenomenon that had gotten her out from that pain-induced nightmare.

The hold hadn’t been painful, quite the contrary if she had to be honest, but it had been so sudden and so comforting that her awakening had been immediate.

It had surprised her with the warmth and care, so much similar to someone she knew about and-

Diana smiled as she decided to resume the ogling of the shirtless Bull that was currently sharing some bantering with her son, her giggles resuming short after as her mind gave just some weight over the matter.

Things were going to be quite grim, weren’t they? But at least she wasn’t leaving this place without someone to make sure that things were going to be fixed or mended.

Matt wasn’t truly aware of the full extent of things, but if he kept around Randal and helped her lovely son through the obstacles of reuniting their family, then the hope wouldn’t be lost even when she was gone.

The woman wouldn’t see the reunion personally, she wouldn’t see… her Morita once again before passing away, but she was more than certain that the two will end up restoring what was lost because of bad choices and the cruel fate.

But one thing still kept pestering her after some time and… it was about Matt.

She wondered how someone like him would behave around someone as strong and fiery as her daughter. Maybe they would bicker, maybe they would ignore each other or…

She giggled, imagining the two sharing some comic moments by sparing each other their experiences, giving the sense of familiarity and kinship to each other.

Diana smiled and nodded to herself, now sure that her mind was really in need of some resting now.

So, despite the sadness coming from the fact she was going to let to waste the delicious sight presented by the human’s replacement, the woman decided to fall asleep, to rest and try to find the best dream that best summarized the little amusing idea of hers.

It was a nice day after all and she shouldn’t let it go to waste in mere ogling.

Her smile twitched mirthfully one last time as she conceded to her need to recover from the seizure and prepare herself with how things were going to turn out for later that day, when Matt would be back and telling how he had spent his time with this interesting young lady.

Maybe there would be some teasing material, maybe she will poke where possible for the sake of gaining a little huff or two from the young man working at her farm.

Yes, today was truly an interesting day.

\----------d-d-d-d---------d-d-d-d--------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d---------d-d-d-d----------

When Minos and Taffy came with the unexpected proposition of having me enjoy some time with the Bunny while the other Prime went and replaced me at work for the sake of giving me some time to relax, I had been skeptical over how things were going to develop from there.

Taffy had never mentioned much of her current living situation and I was completely uncertain of how her house would be presented, only that it was someplace where she was happy to be living in.

Part of me expected a simple flat with just enough services to allow her to have a modest and decent way to live and… I was mostly correct as we finally arrived at the medium-sized building that was the young woman’s home.

It was just a little smaller than Minos’ but… still much more than I had thought it to be.

The house was much bigger than expected even by the inside, the living room being the largest place in the building, followed by the kitchen, and I was impressed by the non-negligible amount of devices attached to the decent-sized TV in front of the large blue couch.

I could see DVD players, I could see consoles and… some other stuff I wasn’t sure of because of the relative ‘futuristic’ design that eluded my capacity to properly understand which purpose they served.

Seriously, what else could people have created to further add to entertainment?!

The visit started quite formal just as I had expected, with Taffy deciding to prepare some tea and starting the little time spent there by asking a little more about the farm and about my situation, her inquiry keeping a little stiff at first as she was trying to not press me into telling anything personal or that could see me even remotely angry or sad.

Her tone and manners reminded me about the little promise we had and so I decided to appreciate rather than point out the overly-helpful attempt.

It was something that warmed my heart and pushed me to genuinely answer at her through the little inquiry that ensued.

I was more than happy to give out some more information as I knew that I hadn’t said much about the overall life at the farm, in return I would then ask about her life with her grandfather, knowing from the Bunny herself that the man had been a lovely one that had helped her much after whatever had happened with the rest of the family.

The Prime was giddy in revealing some of the funnier events spent with her grandpa, all her memories of the now-gone old man being incredibly sweet and painting him in a good light to my eyes.

Things were proceeding smoothly with the two of us relaxing in each other company and soon the formality was dropped for the sake of bringing more topics and ways to spend the time together without having the situation turn stale or boring.

Soon it was general topics and then some tentative subjects over personal life which I answered very carefully, just like she was when I returned the favor back to her.

It was kind of adorable when the girl tried to ask if I would have liked to play together with her at some sport games and… I replied to her with a delighted ‘yes’ when she presented some Wii-like games.

Sure, the device in question wasn’t anything like the thick white console, nor did it have the clunky controls the Nintendo-made device was infamous for and the smoothly-receptive sensor of movement was definitively better than the Kinect’s known one.

Competitiveness ensued when we started to win over each other, the escalation further increased when we decided to make some challenges after some matches by giving ourselves handicaps to make things difficult to complete with high scores.

While Taffy proved the best in the type of games that required high-reactivity as her mind was adept in quick-thinking, I was better prepared to beat her in those few sports that actually required some steady and precise aiming, like Archery and Skeet Shooting rendering things evenly-matched by the end of our first session of gaming.

After three sets of lists that saw two victories for the Prime and only one for me, we decided to step up the pace and pick up something that offered a little less competitive but also improved the amusing element about our dual presence here.

Just Dance existed much to my silent shock, the dancing game had somehow endured through 200 years of life and now the last version was here for the two of us to use to make some mirthful actions out of it.

Before we could begin, the young woman went back to her bedroom while the disc started to load in the device, my eyes alternating between staring at the screen of the TV and the little hallway where the Bunny had gone.

Moments passed and then Taffy was back in the living room with a bright and dazzling smile but, instead of her previous dress, she was wearing some gym-wear that consisted of a pair of knee-long pants black and sleeveless light-blue tank top.

At the end of my brief staring, I finally noticed that my face was burning red as the clothes were hugging her figure just… so well.

The Prime was smiling as her face was sporting a blush too at the fact that I had spent a notable amount of time to check her out.

This little awkward moment was interrupted as game finished to initialized and we were offered the opportunity to pick the song we wanted to dance at.

By the menu selection I could see that some of the songs had some high scores already set and I couldn’t help but imagine the girl having gone through some of those alone or with other friends… and scoring so high even though some of the titles were inherently difficult from my knowledge.

Some of the songs were ‘classics’ that I knew about because those were actually ‘modern’ ones from ‘when’ I came from, but others were new stuff that sounded fairly okay to listen to much to my quiet realization.

We distanced each other as to not cause any problems with our movements and to give ourselves enough space to accomplish our own parts without obstructing the other.

Soon the show began when the first song was selected and the entertainment resumed to a higher degree, much to my glee and surprise.

Gone was the little streak of challenges that we had back with the sport games, mostly because we were put to some straining effort with the quick-paced tunes and the various actions to remember in the long-run.

It was a long session of dancing around and laughing at each other as we tried to nail the various actions required by the songs and a fair amount of times ended up failing and making some silly poses.

Not even JoJo would appreciate some of those.

This long-lasting session also left us both sweating but happily so because of the progress accomplished with this activity of ours as we ended up completing more than half of the untouched or low-ranked songs Taffy had available in her profile.

We went for three hours of intense dancing, going through multiple songs and doing our best to keep up with each other as our scores were close to be the same most of the time with some minor clashes here and there.

There were also a few instances where Taffy would just easily beat me by a major percentage and it was terribly amusing to see the Bunny to be this happy at the minor victories, just enough to erase the little foul taste of defeat.

The fun we were experiencing made time fly quickly and soon it was time to eat something as our stomachs started to grumble much to our partial embarrassment.

Lunch came by and the girl was more than happy to allow me to help her in preparing the final tasks by the table and by the kitchen, albeit showing some paranoia as I handled the various objects here for the sake of supporting her around.

It was just a guess, but maybe the Prime was very attached to the kitchen and didn’t want to see me causing any problem within her little kingdom.

She had said in one of the last few times spent together that she was rather possessive of her utensils and ‘reign’ over the kitchen so that theory wasn’t as far-fetched as it might sound like at first sight.

Soon we had our plates, glasses, cutlery and beverages prepared at the table and… I couldn’t help but frown at the decision of the young woman to employ a bottle of wine for the occasion.

It wasn’t that early to call it an unhealthy move but I was also considering the fact that I didn’t work well with red wine in general as it would get me drunk very quickly.

Taffy looked fine with her own decision and I quickly assumed that she would have been able to keep up with the a glass or two but, as lunch concluded half an hour later, I ended up discovering that it wasn’t just the case.

Looking a little giddy and quite unfocused, I stared at Taffy with my own minor blush caused by the alcohol, my face heated up by the beverage as I felt my entire body warming up in response to the beverage.

A giggle left her lips. “Y-You look quite silly from there,” She pointed out with a dummy smile, my frown deepening as I was now sure of it.

Taffy was a light-weight and this situation wasn’t just alright. Or at least, not good because she hardly looked alright because of the wine.

But before I could have the chance to point out the fact that maybe it was time for me to leave and that the girl should have gotten some sleep, the Bunny stood up from her chair and slowly made her way towards me.

She looked like she was interested in something about me, yet her overall expression gave little of what were her current plans.

The Prime was quiet in her pace, her legs wobbling just barely as a smug smirk was perfectly visible from my still position.

Her green eyes were poised over my face and then her hand moved onto my cheek, her thumb giving it a single swipe before retreating back to her face as she licked the little stain of sauce she had caught.

Her smile turned in a grin. “Yummy~.” She let out happily before leaned towards my face, just enough to have her lips close to my cheek and… she giggled once again as her face now showed some…

Playfulness and desire.

She was rather close to my face and I was aware that things weren’t certainly going to end up in a mere tease, nor she looked to be leaning away anytime soon at the current conditions of things.

It was something I could discern from her curious glance, for her interested glance.

W-What is going on? A-And why is she-

_**\----------d-d-d-d-------(LEMON DETECTED, CENSORING PROTECTION APPLIED!)--------d-d-d-d-------** _

**Switching to Third Person!**

Whatever was passing through Matt’s mind was shattered the moment the girl’s tongue wandered out of her lips and onto his cheek, following a little path that ended right by the edge of his lips.

Her amusement twitched, craving for her to brave just a little more in that perfect opportunity to strike the shocked prey.

Ria smiled brightly and excitedly before lunging for a daring attack through the exposed defenses, leaning a little more and pressing her lips onto his, capturing him in that brazen action that her usual self wouldn’t even dare to imagine to happen.

She felt his warmth onto his face and the Bunny let her mouth part as to let the curious tongue out for some exploration within the unknown and delicious cave that just waited for her to be taken fully.

It didn’t take her much to find the human’s wet and shy tongue, slowly ensnaring it within her own and soon deepening the first kiss.

He moaned, but so did she as the girl accepted the full expression of her pleasure and interest in pursuing a _stronger approach_ with the young man before her.

She could still feel the wine on it, she could feel the delightful lunch she had prepared with him with love, affection and some desire.

Ria was just a part of Taffy, something that existed just to masquerade the genuine attraction the girl had over some lovely hunks around town and… Matt had become her main target by doing just so little but so much in a limited amount of time.

Maybe it was his trustworthiness and his caring side that just made him a potential companion to have as a lover, maybe it was the fact he was so surprised but not even the slightest offended by her daring move and thus proving that this attraction wasn’t as one-sided as her usual self would declare so senselessly in the last few days.

Yet Ria’s bravery had been rewarded in the best of ways as the reaction she was noticing from the human was more than enough to confirm her suspicions and soon… the escalation erupted from the young man’s careful ‘return’.

The young man’s arms slowly moved, his brain now recovering from the sudden intimacy but, instead of pushing back the initial attempt, he rather went to test the waters himself.

If there hadn’t been alcohol, if he hadn’t gotten so unprepared because of that needy kiss, maybe the human would have tried to stop this from going too far.

But now that he saw the craving look on the young woman’s face, that his moans were returned by hers, Matt knew that he had to do something to help his partner and his hands reached for her chest.

Underneath her tank-top, her nipples now showing, something that was all possible by the fact that the usually-shy Prime ‘had forgotten’ to put on some sport bra to avoid this predicaments to show and… it was just another sign for the man to continue.

His fingers grazed softly at the breasts through the clothes, tentatively gauging the perkiness and the fullness of her bountiful bosom, giving some shivers to the increasingly-needy Bunny.

Ria was actually surprised to notice that her ‘hold’ was vanishing as Taffy was slowly emerging from her little hideout and… even more surprisingly craving more than her counterpart as she seemed ready to return to her usual control.

A little annoying, but also intriguing as the young man finally braved even more as his hands finally slipped inside her top and his hands barely touched some of her fur.

More shivers, her moans intensifying as the kiss seemed to now become even more pleasure-inducing as Matt finally gave up the last shreds of resilience he had over the predicament.

Taffy was back in control and wanting to continue more, and so was the young man that was returning her affections by touching right where she wanted at the moment.

Matt’s thoughts were scrambled, his emotions ruining whatever little logical reasoning he had going until that kiss and his interest was now of satisfying the young woman now sitting on his lap.

The young man noticed how light she felt on her legs and… how wet she was in that exact moment by that lovely attention he was giving to her bosom and the way his tongue was wrestling with hers.

It took him a while to notice that there was indeed a moist spot on her pants, mostly because his capacity to understand things in that exact moment being non-existent at best.

His sight briefly glancing down to see that she was that much excited, even wanting more from him by the way her moans were growing louder than before.

The human blinked and… he felt even more interest in going ‘deeper’ with this development.

The kiss briefly interrupted, a trail of saliva connecting their tongues as Matt tried to formulate a simple but curt query over the possibility of going further than that.

“T-Taffs,” He started, his brain and mouth failing to formulate a coherent speech. “Do you want… more?”

There was a dazed look on the Prime’s face, but Taffy did listen and understand what her lover was asking and, knowing that her own attempts to speak in that moment would genuinely be less than the ones displayed by him, she merely nodded and let out just a word.

“Y-Yes!”

The command was received loud and clear by the young man and soon, with some little doubts and hesitation, he grasped at the girl’s legs and pulled her up as he stood up from the chair.

A soft ‘eep’ left her lips at that sudden action, but soon a quiet giggled showed that her surprise was a genuinely positive one.

The Bunny pressed her head on his shoulder, a small but incredibly-bright smile on her face as the young man took her back to her bedroom and slowly approached her bed.

Slowly releasing the Prime on her bed, Matt smiled a little as he noticed the little blush now present on her face as his eyes wandered down to the damp spot on her pants.

The human knelt and slowly spread her legs apart as he approached the interesting section of the clothes, the girl blinking in surprise as he slowly started to undo her pants.

She tried to help too, but her hands were a little uncoordinated before finally giving the last push to remove the piece off from her and onto the floor.

Her lower body was now fully exposed to the young man and soon he smiled at her wet slit before turning to her face.

“Is… someone needy?”

She contemplated pouting at that little joke but… it wasn’t an incorrect statement and, before she could even reply to that little remark, she felt something wet reach out for her sensitive clit, a sudden wave of pleasure breaking her trail of thoughts as her eyes went wide and her mouth parted to let out a loud moan at that unexpected action.

But that little contact was just the beginning of what the human had planned for her.

His tongue played masterfully on her needy button, sending shivers through the Prime and giving her some heavenly moments of grace in that first experience of hers.

It was after a good minute of enjoying this lovely ministrations that things went one step forward as she soon felt a finger touching her slit.

The index slipped easily inside, sending some more pleasure to the excited young woman and making her moan in delight, louder than before as the finger was soon joined by a second one.

Moments of quiet were then replaced by further actions as the fingers started to move back and forth, creating friction within her walls and creating even higher and newer levels of pleasures that Taffy hadn’t certainly been aware of until now.

But just as her hopes of finding even more pleasure with the clearly more-experienced partner started to lift up in a gracious manner, her climax interrupted those interesting thoughts as a loud moan tried to leave her lips, now pressing on each other as her love juice finally were let out.

Still, some words that preceded the vent managed to get through.

“ _O-Oh, raspberries!_ ”

It wasn’t anything particularly strong, but Matt noticed almost instantly that the girl had came and slowly he retracted his finger out of her highly-sensitive cunny, his face retreating from her as he slowly stood up to look at the results of his hard work.

The young woman had a big smile on her face and a satisfied look that told much about her current emotions, making it clear that the little session had been well-liked by the Bunny.

Yet, just as he prepared to lay beside her, Taffy blinked at him and then _looked down_ at the noticeable bulge within his pants.

She giggled, this time the human being visibly surprised and speechless… or that was until the Bunny patted the bed beside her, a silent order that the young man quickly complied to as the girl turned and slowly began unfastening his overall and removing his underwear-

The Prime almost tripped her face to the mattress, only to be stopped by the lengthy mast now unleashed out from its restrains and… Taffy got a closeup of it.

The fur on the sensible and tense shaft was something odd, but it managed to send not a few shivers down Matt’s spine at the sensation.

Green eyes widening in surprise, the young woman gulped nervously as her nose pressed on the rod as she was hit by the scent. It was surprise, then curiosity and then finally… brought her lips onto its tip.

The human bit down a groan as her lips pressed right on the head of the member, testing the girth for a brief instance.

Then her lips parted open, revealing her tongue as it curiously wandered around it. He finally moaned, his hands failing to reach his mouth in time and giving Taffy just the sound she needed to hear to proceed forward.

Her tongue retreated back inside her mouth and soon her lips started to descend down the length, her warmth sending even more chills to the young man.

She continued her slow descent, cautious to not get too much of it and then… she bobbed back up.

The Bunny started a careful routine of going up and down, the activity’s speed depending much by the reaction of her partner and by her adaptability over the situation.

Soon she started to pick up the pace, still mindful enough to not go too far with what she could do in that moment.

The pace continued to pick up even more but, differently from her predicament, the human climaxed a little sooner than she did.

“I-I’m- close-!” The warning was quickly heed to as the girl slowed down her speed but didn’t left her current disposition, waiting for the zenith of the ministrations to happen.

A loud moan and her mouth was filled by his seed, the substance instantly tasting a little bitter but… also surprisingly not that bad.

She gulped down slowly, retreating out from the shaft with a little ‘pop’ before she fully gulped down the rest of the liquid.

Matt blinked in surprise, he was sweating as much as she was and… the young man noticed that the Bunny was dripping in need once again, her stare turning lustful once again and they both shared a mutual smile before going for the final act of that delightful experience.

The human decided that missionary would have been the best for now, thus they went to prepare for the act but, just as he started to align his stiff mast for the beginning of the last bit of that session, the girl tensed up a little and started to speak.

“M-Matt, it’s my first time and-” She huffed, noticing his surprised frown. “I-I want you to d-do it, but do it gently.”

The order was well-received with a nod and soon the young man started to push the tip inside of her, they were both tense as the rod went deeper and deeper… and then the Bunny tensed up the most, her grip over his arms hardening as she flinched in minor pain.

He stopped for a moment, letting the Prime recover from the situation and he himself looked tenser about the whole predicament.

Taffy stood tense for a little more, then her eyes blinked back to normal and her face relaxed just like her hold did. A small smile formed as some tears rolled off. “I-I’m ready.”

Matt nodded and slowly started to retreat the member, then before it could leave, he started to push it back inside with the same slow pace.

At first the pleasure was one-sided, the girl’s body requiring a little more time to recover from the first penetration and after a while her hips started to move rhythmically with the young man’s.

Her silent reaction shifted to minor moans that finally became louder and louder.

Pain was replaced by renewed pleasure, the heat turning good and her mind slowly melting at the intercourse, both enjoying the situation the best possible.

Her arms reached out for his neck, forcing him to lean back down with his face until he was upon her face and the two started to kiss quietly.

They resumed the beginning of this escalation, the needy and deep kissing that saw their minds letting go of any external thoughts.

They were alone in that little world of theirs, everything else sounding so important and superfluous in that precise instance.

There was satisfaction in the beautiful world, there was happiness and… there was trust.

A mutual sense of trust, of desire, of caring, and of understanding.

Their climax almost coinciding, their kiss ending momentarily as Matt spoke.

“I-I’m close-”

“D-Do it!” The girl interjected loudly, her moans mixing in within. “I-It’s fine!”

The acceptance was more than enough to push the pace to pick up even more, the girl feeling her climax close to come too and-

Their eyes widened and their moans were drowned in each other mouth, her inner walls were soon painted in white as they both tensed and let this happen without obstacle.

It was the final deed and… they both released themselves from that tension.

The kiss ended once again, this time to allow the two to find some air to recover from the tiring endeavor.

Matt fell beside Taffy, the bunny slowly turning and wrapping her arms around his chest, pulling him close as the two enjoyed the little peace from that turbulent but passionate storm they were part of in equal parts.

“T-That was-” The Bunny started quietly, only to stop as the human returned the hug. The young man sighed and nodded at her as the two shared a long look.

“That was… amazing,” Matt commented with a small but bright smile. “And you are amazing.”

Her smile twitched, soon a giggle left her lips as she leaned on his chest for some rest.

Silence lasted for some time, both still awake and feeling ready to do more.

It was the Prime that decided to try, staring once more up to the human and smiling a little shyly.

“R-Round 2?”

The young man blinked but he was smiling as he gave her a nod.

“Round 2,” He replied before they slowly assumed another position, this time the Bunny taking the lead and sitting onto him.

And while Matt had been carefully thinking that this sessions wouldn’t last more than three or four more rounds, his shock when they ended up going for two digits numbers was equal to the final strengths left on him when his lover got tired enough to fall asleep.

In that little instance, the young man realized _why_ Primes considered to have more stamina than humans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "So, the Censored version has been updated and now we are going to upload the Uncensored ver-"
> 
> *Whistling*
> 
> "Sigh, what do you want, Am...bar?"
> 
> Something got your attention? My eyes are up here after all~.
> 
> "*Gulp Nervously* A-Ambar, can you tell me w-why-"
> 
> Am I naked and very close to glomp you?
> 
> "...Yes?"
> 
> Well you see, you did provide a lemon and, feeling sympathetic of your plight... I thought why not offer you a reward~?
> 
> "I-It sounds interesting... but- [I refuse!]"
> 
> Snort. Is that so, Rohan Kishibe? And what if this isn't a choice after all?
> 
> "...I need an adult-"
> 
> I am an adult~!
> 
> [The Author was found on his bed, shivering with a pleased but confused face. Something had happened but... he would never say what exactly did happen to him.]
> 
> P.S. Someone will surely point out that no condom was involved, but I also remind that it is known from the Ask the High Prime that Humans and Primes are highly-incompatible in conceiving so... yeah, there isn't that chance for that to happen.
> 
> P.P.S. I realized just now that Taffy had her V-Card until she got together with Randal so... yeah, I had to diverge 'a tiny bit from Canon' and that part was mentioned in one of the many Ask the High Prime minicomics so... yeah, I'm dumb~.


	11. Preservation and Development

**~Matt’s POV~**

I tried my best to not appear too much embarrassed or even to give out too much of what had happened the day before in Taffy’s apartment.

Diana had been smiling teasingly for some time now since I’ve returned to the farm, her green eyes glinting immense amusement by the awkward posture I had decided to adopt while sitting on the wooden chair, my shoulders tense and slowly sagged forward as the woman had been quick to pick up that things had indeed gone beyond a mere day of ‘relaxation’.

Maybe it was because I had used the young woman’s shower to get prepared and the scent of the different shampoo was quick to notice, maybe it was because I looked way too nervous to give the impression of having just rested with the Bunny and nothing else.

Or maybe it was because I had gone back to the farm by the time of lunch of the day following the supposed ‘relax day’ and not by the afternoon of that very day as I had promised to do during the phone call.

Randal was confused at first about the predicament, his curiosity roused by the knowing look her mother had been displaying since the very moment I had turned up to Las Lindas.

The woman had been so eager to greet me with a ‘good morning’ and _offering_ me take a seat right in front of her by the table in the kitchen as she wanted to know how ‘relaxing’ had gone for me.

I complied silently with this ‘request’ as I knew that there wasn’t an actual choice here, my head slowly resting on the table as I was indeed looking a little paler than usual.

I realized a little too late the intrigued glow shining from her eyes and I had just enough time to brace for the interrogation that would then ensue.

“So how fun was ‘resting’ with your friend… that is also a girl~?” She poked with a hum, winking at the ‘girl’ detail before pressing me to answer this ‘simple’ question.

Just as I’ve said before, not much of a choice for me to deny her this information, but I could at least limit the damage somehow by taking a careful approach over the case.

I merely sighed. “We had some fun… then we had some good lunch and… then I discovered something important,”

She blinked, interest peeking at the curt reply and the specific terms used. “Oh?”

I nodded at her little quip, biting down a tiredness-induced groan before nodding happily and thankfully at Randal, the Collie having prepared a cup of steamy coffee by the time I had returned.

I took just a little sip from it as to feel the flavor, trying to gain some more strength from the beverage before continuing with my cautious explanation because I certainly wanted to avoid throwing too many details so easily.

My brain was slowly rebooting but I could already feel some energy back in my body as I went to reply to her silent questioning.

“We were enjoying some chatting for a while, then we played some games by the TV and… then we got to lunch,” I blinked, my sight finally gaining some more focus thanks to the coffee.

Seriously, walking from town to the farm had been a tiring deed on itself as my body was still completely sore from what had happened yesterday and my sleep-deprived mind could hardly keep up a straight line.

It was by far one of the weirdest experience I had to deal with as clumsily tripping around had been one of my worst fears along the journey but, thank God, I ended up at the farm without face-faulting not even once.

An experience that I hardly wanted to repeat anytime in the near future as it had kept me fairly… drained and detached from reality itself. Maybe I should have accepted Taffy’s offer to escort me safely back to the farm.

Still, I was happy, genuinely so, and even grateful that the aftermath of that glorious night had been quite lovely and wholesome to face together with the Bunny, once again proving how kind the girl truly was around me.

“Lunch has to have been lasting for hours to see you returning to Las Lindas now after a day of going out,” Diana mirthfully commented, gaining a frown out of me but I conceded that her teasing was much more lenient than I had expected it to be.

“We may have had some important ‘discussion’ that dragged until morning,” I replied back with a yawn, eyes regaining some lucidity. “I guess the topic was just undeniably too good to ignore and.. things ended up derailing for some time.”

The comment wasn’t missed by the Cow Prime, the woman snorting giddily as she understood perfectly what I was referring too and was visibly appreciating the way I was expressing what had happened that day.

But while Diana was understanding the innuendo flawlessly, Randy still incredibly confused over the words that we were both using to keep things ‘innocent’ and the reactions coming from her mother from those ‘silly words’.

It was just… amusing to see how he looked this much perplexed and quite unaware about what the subject of this interrogation truly was as he continued to handle the cutlery and plates by the sink, ears twitching in attention at the discussion happening behind him to keep him knowing of what was going on there.

“And I guess it was an intense one too considering the way you returned… this much tired from your visit,” She giggled at the minor facepalm I pulled, her head shaking in amusement by the way I reacted to easily at her poking.

My brain just couldn’t keep up with her antics and return fire to fire right now, so I merely conceded the barest clue possible and to give her some feeble glimpses of what had truly happened while I was at Taffy’s house that day.

“It was a long but satisfied conversation,” I admitted with a nod, a tiny smirk forming on my face. “And she was fantastic.”

That lovely girl sure was the best friend I had in years; not only in terms of genuine appreciation we shared for each other but also because we shared many values and ideas about life.

Truly one of the best individuals I’ve met in ages and I wouldn’t deny that I could see why there was ‘that’ specific decision during our wake-up chit-chatting.

“I sure she was,” Diana nodded slowly, her eyes adopting a more serious edge before continuing. “But I hope that you two ended up… making decisions over what had happened.”

There was a pause from the sharp serious turn of the conversation, a brief moment to catch up with what I just heard and what I was supposed to say back at her without causing any major issues.

The question was easy to understand at first listening; she was bringing up the fact that in a normal situation couples were born from such strong intimate bonds and that it would surely end up in forming serious relationships.

But to be truthful over what had happened back a few hours ago, I had expected Taffy to ask about it back that morning and question what that long day had changed for us, how much things were going to be different from now on.

Were we still friends? More, or even something even weirder but…

But what had happened earlier that morning was by far the most unexpected but possibly the most curious development I had ever dealt with in my entire life.

“Before I answer this delicate question of yours, I wish to point out that Taffy was the one to propose what we should make of this situation as she pointed out that there were multiple reasons that were meant to be taken into account,” I carefully and tentatively started, squirming a little as I saw Diana frowning at my words but letting me continue nonetheless.

“We decided that, since we don’t feel any romantic feelings with each other right now, that… we would see how things evolve from now on rather than rushing things up this early,” I concluded with a sigh and prepared with her reaction.

It had been shocking to hear the girl speak about this so softly but calmly, Taffy had appeared nervous at the beginning when she started to discuss about this important query we both had been having from that very morning.

That question had been pressing for a long while and I had expected the usually kind-spoken Bunny to ask if we were now going to be an item after what we just experienced so intimately and so passionately the day before, with her hopeful but lovely tones and manners.

Yet she had managed to stand out by just bringing out her concerns over a sudden elevation of our relationship, mentioning some noteworthy details that, after a long day of intense activity would go missing for most people, but that she had been able to keep up perfectly.

Taffy wasn’t just ‘most people’ and she demonstrated this by saying that while she didn’t feel any difference with how she felt about me, the girl also didn’t feel like it had been truly meaningless even though it wasn’t out of love.

Something had indeed changed in our relationship, but it wasn’t a grand upgrade towards a full romantic commitment as similar occasions would have caused.

Rather it was something about this newfound trust… deepening beyond friendship and renewing the two of us out of our own different stresses.

It was an odd bond that we now had from that curious night, but then again I don’t think it was that much usual for a Prime to bond this closely with a human and… we were both fine with this assessment over what had happened, agreeing wholeheartedly to It even.

Sometimes we have to accept the fact that sparks can’t just exist without something genuinely there from the beginning that could bloom and… we weren’t attracted to each other in the romantic level.

We were buddies, we shared laughs and we shared hobbies, but in the end we weren’t willing to pursue something as serious as that.

Maybe it was because it was too early but… I could see why it wouldn’t work in the long-term for the two of us, our attitudes being far too similar to each other and I seriously didn’t want to bicker with Taffy; At least not for silly couple-related debacles.

Another pause, this time it was heavier than the previous one as Diana seemed to think about the explanation, a hum or two leaving her throat but those were muffled by her closed mouth.

“I can see why you two are careful about this,” The woman slowly nodded, eyes glimmering some calm and support. “But I hope you are ready to take the ‘proper responsibilities’ if more developments are born from this little rendezvous you shared with your Bunny friend.”

My eyes widened at what the Cow Prime was alluding to; the possibility had indeed crossed my mind multiple times that very morning as I slowly woke up to realize what had happened and why I was sharing Taffy’s bed with the girl herself.

Even after Taffy explained me that Primes were incredibly incompatible with other species, my brain would still point out that there was a ‘nigh-impossible’ chance that she could remain pregnant.

A chance above zero but below one percent, still a little high for my panicked self about the matter.

I was nervous; I’ve never been this close to make that big step forward with my life as I would have the proper precautions to avoid creating the possibility itself, either because I was too young or because the action itself was not something that cemented a relationship.

And now that I just had this job at the farm? I was legitimately concerned about giving a proper life to both the young woman and an eventual child, even my unused bank account (if it was still active in this world) would give just three to five years of modest comfort to a little family.

It truly was a major issue to contemplate to the fullest even after this talk.

I blinked as I found myself staring at the ceiling, trying to draw some proper sentences out before ending up causing some misunderstanding with the genuinely-interested woman in front of me.

That step was a huge one. A step filled with more responsibilities and with life-changing effects that could determine much from an individual’s life.

I finally looked down back at Diana and nodded. “I would take full responsibility in creating the best place for Taffy and... a child,” I said with a steely tone. “Even if it means taking more jobs at once.”

It was simple, it was curt, but it was effective and brought the message straight forward to the rightfully-concerned woman; she had experienced a husband leaving her alone to take care of their daughter and I was truthfully honest in saying I wasn’t going to ever contemplate something this much foul and disgusting.

The Cow Prime relaxed and nodded, a small smile breaking through the thin line created by her lips pressing together. “That sounds like you have thought about this case a lot before now.”

I slowly nodded at her guess. “It’s a possibility-”

“That wouldn’t happen to a human like you,” She sighed mirthfully. “It’s good that you remind me that you have a good heart, but you should understand that my question was hypothetical and it’s an impossible case rather than a small certainty.”

I frowned at her calm statement, part of me wanting to say that there were numbers involved… but Diana looked so sure of it that I decided to drop this topic. For now.

I expected the discussion to fall from here; there wasn’t anything else to add to the matter except for-

“Still, I wish to understand something about this ‘discussion’ of yours you had with the lovely girl,” The Cow Prime returned to the assault. “Did you perhaps take pauses during the action or-”

“There weren’t breaks,” I admitted neutrally, the woman tensing up in visible surprise at that interjection.

“Wasn’t that… eighteen hours ago?” She asked more quietly than usual.

And I shook my head. “We both woke up about four hours ago and I think we slept for an hour or two,” I mused calmly, then I nodded. “Yes, it was around ten, eleven hours.”

Suddenly the woman pushed herself out of her chair and stood up before slamming her hands at the table, the sheer strength causing the wood to groan and almost crack at the pressure as the Cow Prime genuinely looked worried at what I just said to her.

“R-Randy, get the First Aid Kit!” Diana said loudly, head turned at her now-surprised son. “Quickly.”

The Collie Prime stood still for a moment, tensing up at the order but soon he rushed to the bathroom with a confused look on his face; He was still unaware of what we had been talking about until now, it seemed.

Yet, my attention was drawn by the shocked escalation I was assisting at the moment, feeling like I was missing something truly important about it.

What did I say wrong about that?

“Diana-” I tried to ask, only to be interrupted by her.

“Humans aren’t meant to go through ten hours of _that_ and get out from it with just a mere case of sore body,” She interjected fiercely. “And we need to check if there is something that requires medical assistance or not.”

I was impressed by the concern and all, but then again I was quick to realizing that the ‘we’ meant Randal and Diana checking on something fairly intimate; And that wouldn’t be alright at all!

“Wait! I am not going to show any-” I tried to protest loudly, blushing a storm at the implications here brought up, unwilling to reveal anything about my personal physique but the woman jumped to action by giving me a deeper frown.

“Then go with Randy and ask him to help if there is the need instead of just sitting here!” She shouted back with a stern look, her worry never faltering and her rage more of a product of said worry. “It’s better to see that you are fine rather than letting you have wait here.”

It was an order; there was no reason to doubt about the intentions behind the demand and yet I was still confused about this development I was center of.

Still why the sudden concern even though I was fine? I was merely sore and while ten hours with Taffy had been one of the most draining experiences possible, I didn’t felt anything that could even assure of any wounds or damage from that lengthy situation I had faced the day prior.

Warmth rising from the intense concern she had towards me aside, this was seriously turning into a very ridiculous and senseless situation!

“B-But-” I tried to protest again and, much to my chagrin, it ended up the same way as the previous protest.

“If you don’t want me to check for any injuries myself, then you better be going right now, son!” Her eyes burned with promise of executing without hesitation this ultimatum and I gulped nervously as she leaned closer before giving one last whisper. “Now.”

My jaw dropped at the threat, the absurd amount of nervousness created by that pressure being more than enough to send me going.

I was quickly out of my chair on my feet as I rushed away from the kitchen and towards the bathroom. A very confused but medically-prepared Collie was waiting there and giving me a quizzical look of what had just happened in the kitchen.

I snorted as I entered the bathroom and started to retell him about what had just transpired, gaining a big reaction out of the young man as he was finally granted the awkward truth and bestowed by a blush similar to mine while I continued with the narration.

_**But while I concluded that curious morning with a very awkward check-up over any ‘damage’ or not, which Randy was mostly excluded from, I ended up ignoring a very important detail. A detail that would have explained much about Diana’s concern.** _

‘ _ **Son’. If only I had heard this before the end approached and... maybe things would have gone better; Possibly.**_

* * *

**~Naerie’s POV~**

It was a calm night in Prism, the High Prime’s mansion enjoying some quiet peace once again after some days spent dealing with a wave of numerous dignitaries arriving to discuss with the leader of the government.

The servants working there felt motivated by this renewed quiet as they proceeded to conclude the last few hours of their shifts with relative silence, to try and bring a pleasant end to this working day without irritating anyone with their presence.

And while the many were feeling happy of the silence running all over the building, there was someone that was finding this peace to be quite difficult to appreciate because of her own concerns over some important matters.

Instead of spending her time by efficiently taking some of her mother’s paperwork to do on her own as she would usually do at this particular hour of the day, Naerie found herself lying on the lone but warm bed in her room, with her unfocused eyes staring up at the ceiling as she continued with the endless thinking over some confusing events happening quite recently.

There was silence in the mansion, but her mind was buzzing with noises coming from the multiple thoughts that kept distract her and mad her somewhat unable to accomplish much of her worload in that exact moment of calm.

It had been a recurring phenomenon in the last four days, something that had been taken by Ambar as a sign that her daughter was genuinely trying to get some more rest out of her hard-work just as she had asked her to.

Yet the woman was completely unaware of the real cause that had gotten her firstborn this much… unnerved and unable to pick up a proper decision over the growing concerns within her soul.

Most of the girl’s tasks would generally require much of her attention diverted in either making searches through her advanced PC and see her adding more information to the Prime Databank.

There were also times where she was required to sign contracts or documents on Ambar’s behalf for important dignitaries or administrators that requested either some augmented budgets or once-requested coinage.

The rest was then spent chatting with the few friends the girl had when she had some ‘free time’ from her responsibilities as the daughter of the high Prime, which was rare nowadays considering the growing burden her mother was letting her deal with.

Yet the current problem that her mind was failing to deliver a solution to wasn’t something that could be answered via technology or advises from trustworthy individuals like her friends were, rather it was something that was currently rendered untouchable because of recent developments.

The Bear Prime was stuck debating about delivering the recent news to the human she had promised so determinedly to help with his curious and terribly-mysterious case or not, the girl having gone silent for a few days now after learning of her new limitation over the subject and the implications that had ensued.

The High Prime had indeed gone to check by this ‘friend’ of hers about the curious dilemma discovered by the unexplainable existence of the two dossiers about Matt Newcastle in the Neo-Earth Databank and the strange lock that not even her mother was capable of opening with her high-admin clearance.

But the woman had then decided to deny the girl any of the information about her discoveries after that visit and had pushed to her a new order about this very topic, one that had given her some confusion when she first heard her mother telling her about this.

The case was now no longer under the young woman’s care; Ambar had mentioned her intention to follow it closely and make sure that nothing would happen to this individual and she had also decided to not provide more of this ‘sensible information’ the woman had gained from her friend.

The High Prime was quick to confirm that it wasn’t a matter of trust, but one of carefulness and security as the ‘plan’ explained to her was ‘far too dangerous to let the girl face’,

The older woman then assured that the young man was going to be left mostly unaware of what was going on at the moment and that he wasn’t a dangerous individual, but one that was meant to do ‘something crucial’ about this unknown plan that only she knows about.

He was important for some untold reason, so much to warrant the older Bear Prime to keep a serious watch onto him as to make sure that none of the ‘wrong bunch of people’ could get even a glimpse of his presence and try to kidnap him for… ‘nefarious business’.

The curt summary of the new discovery gave off a generally-confusing outlook about what was going on with the case the young Prime was part of, further increasing her concerns over the matter instead of softly push them to simmer down as Ambar had expected those to.

There was a ‘wrong bunch of people’ acting around? Were those part of the ruins of the old Empire or were they part of something new that the girl was unaware of? Should Naerie keep some guard up for the sake of making sure that nothing harmful ever happened to the people in Prism?

Her confusion was softly cushioned by meeting up with Shin on two separate occasions in the half-week, the first time being when she was ‘ordered’ to get some rest by her mother while the latter was just the day before.

Both reunions gave her some more clarity over the grand situation at hand, yet even her closest friend was unable to provide his best analysis over the strange topic because of the lack of important clues of the case itself.

A problem created by the fact said clues were restricted from public-eye and she was tentatively walking a fine line by asking him for council with this weirdly-presented subject.

It was saddening that she had to keep something this important from her childhood friend but she still ended up restraining her tongue from giving out the essential info required to compile a proper assessment, giving no little challenge to the blond as he was left with the headache-inducing, fragmented case to help her with.

Despite the feeble hints offered and the grand secrecy forwarded by her tone, the young Aryoko was quick to give the best he could over the predicament presented to him without appearing too much deterred;

His perspective adding some more questions for her to consider and interesting routes she could now make use of about the topic of dealing with the sudden ‘change of leadership’ occurred just recently and…

She still had to contact Matt to inform him of the new twist of the case about her ‘resignation’, but her mind had failed to give her the best viable path about this call, or better, she didn’t know if she should comply to the demand advanced by her mother or… try something a little more risky and see if she could do something about the case on her own.

Even though she was completely sure of her mother’s capacity to handle perfectly a case like this one, the young Bear Prime was still concerned over the implications behind ‘betraying’ the trust the human had given to her to do this work.

Her promise of personally pursuing the truth was something Naerie herself had offered so confidently about and Matt had agreed to have her help him with this confusing situation; she couldn’t just shrug it off without feeling disappointed in her own capacity to keep up promises.

Trust had been given to her and her commitment had long been offered and accepted by the young man, thus she was more than obliged to offer her own assistance rather than letting the case fall off her hands.

Sure, the solution to this mystery was something beyond her current capacities allowed her to reach out to, but she could try to gather more clues around any other paths that she had yet to discover.

Maybe she could get some concrete foundation of the case if she could pry the newly-acquired information off her mother, maybe by subtly trying to coerce the details out with a carefully-planned situation.

And so the young Bear Prime could finally try to achieve something with this issue instead of wasting her time… procrastinating.

The girl blinked at the ceiling at the mere mention of the term, feeling like the word was unusual for someone like her and yet it was just the case considering how much time she had wasted lying here on her bed.

It’s been four days since she had any contact with the human and maybe it was time to confirm her decision about the matter.

Having devolved so much time to try and discover the truth about what had happened to Matt Newcastle, Naerie had to confirm this determination by going to find her mother and formally oppose her choice about having her drop this case.

Slipping away from her warm bed with a quick yawn, the young Prime ventured outside her room and she started to walk towards her mother’s bedroom, convinced that it was about time to bring up the topic up now rather than waiting for more days.

From what she could remember from her previous look at Ambar’s agenda, the High Prime wasn’t supposed to be having any guests in that particular time of the day and thus the girl reached for the room without hesitation nor worry of finding someone that shouldn’t be learning about this sensible case.

The door was barely open and Naerie slipped inside without much issue as she took a glimpse around the mostly empty room.

It was much bigger than her own bedroom, but the ample space was mostly left untouched as the king-sized bed and the various pieces of furniture hardly filled up the humongous.

Her light-blue eyes fixed by the large mirror several meters in front of the bed where Ambar was taking a look with… someone else.

She almost paused at the sight of the blue-haired lizard-like Prime that was giggling with the red-haired woman, but then she remembered that Geecku had started to live within the limits of her mother’s bedroom.

Both Crests were lacking any form of clothes, the High Prime’s own dress having been folded by the bed as the two were chatting amicably about some undecipherable topic.

Something silly for sure but… the young Prime didn’t make her way there just to deign this kind of situations, knowing that her reasons were a little more important than anything that could come up from the debacle unfolding before her.

Yellow eyes spotted her quickly as she approached the two and the wild-like Prime rushed at her with a big smile plastered on her face.

Naerie prepared her footing, her body tensing up in anticipation as she lifted her arms up and intercepted the blue-haired wide-smiled missile aiming for some tackle-hugging.

Geecku succeeded in bringing her in a tight up, but her own strength prevented a possible backward fall to the fall.

The giggling mess nuzzled at her chest before staring up with an adorable expression. “Naerie~!”

The young Prime merely blinked. “Hello Geecku,” She replied neutrally, getting a brighter smile as the Crest of Life affectionately kept cuddling on her bosom, her attention slowly turning up to her smiling mother.

“Sweetie, I didn’t expect you to visit us tonight,” The woman greeted kindly. “Is there something wrong? Or maybe you just wanted to be around your mommy?”

Naerie blinked again. “Mother, I… wish to talk about the discussion we had two days ago,” She replied carefully, knowing that a small mistake could see her plans crumbling.

The High Prime looked surprise at first at the serious comment, but then her bubbly personality returned full-strength. “Oh? Perhaps something you forgot to tell me about Mr. Newcastle?”

Now it was her chance to speak and give herself the edge in the following discussion and-

“Newcastle?” The innocent voice coming from the cute-looking young woman now nested on Naerie said. “Who is he?”

Ambar’s mouth opened and then closed slowly as she thought how to properly solve this situation without getting Geecku too curious over the matter.

If there was something that she really wanted to avoid was to have the lovely girl to try and harass someone for the sake of ‘fun’. Cute she might be, but restrain was something that the Crest of Life should learn to make use of in many occasions.

“Someone that is incredibly boring,” The Bear Prime urged, turning her attention quickly to her daughter. “But dear, what is it that you wished to tell me?”

The girl nodded and then spoke. “I wish… to keep the case.”

There was a brief moment of silence. “You wish to… be leading this?”

A quick nod, then the silence resumed momentarily. In her mind, it was just the storm brewing inside her mother as she prepared to deliver some rare lecture about her safety and-

“And you would accept some compromises if you were reinstated, correct?” Ambar asked calmly, eyes displaying some complex trail of thoughts going inside her head.

The young redhead frowned but nodded again, this time a little slower. “If those aren’t too limiting then-”

“Okay.” The High Prime interjected without hesitation, causing immense confusion to rouse up from her daughter.

“Mother?” Naerie asked with a suspicious tone. “What kind of… compromises are you talking about?”

The woman hummed. “Oh, you know how I have suggested something about trying to be your subordinate with one of your activities? To see how you lead people?”

...The girl _may_ or may not have heard her mother ask about this once or twice in the last three months but was this what she wanted? To be her subordinate?

“That’s i-”

“And I want to have a face to face with this individual you seem so interested into,” The High Prime pointed out. “I think it’s time you have a proper ‘meeting’ with him thanks to Minos, now that I know his new phone number.”

Didn’t Minos change the number just two days ago- Oh, her mother has to have discovered it once again.

For some reason, the young woman couldn’t help but feel sorry for the Bull Prime with the knowledge that Ambar would now have the means to pester him once again with night calls.

“So that means that-”

“Ambar, liar,” Geecku piped in with a little angry expression on her face. “You say he boring but you want see him.”

“That’s because he is a friend of Naerie, little one, not for any other purposes-”

“Li-ar!” The blue-haired Prime repeated loudly and a little angrier, then the Crest of Life turned to look at Naerie. “Who is he?” She asked again, this time with her previous cute tone.

“Someone that I promised to help,” The girl answered flatly. “Someone which predicament is overall quite complex and boring, that is why mother defined him as such.”

Yellow eyes widened in realization, her lips parting to let out a silent ‘Oh’. “So he is in danger or-”

“Not in danger,” Ambar jumped in with a small smile. “He just needs some help to understand a situation that is indeed boring.”

Geecku spent some time looking back and forth between parent and child, then the young woman nodded with a huff. “Sounds boring.”

“It is,” Naerie confirmed calmly. “And I guess there would be no reason to not have Geecku take part with the little call tomorrow, so she can see this boring individual.”

The High Prime tensed up just for a moment at the proposal but, before she could say anything to deter her daughter from going forward with this proposal, the Crest of Life shook her head.

“If he is boring, I no want to see him.” Geecku replied with a certain tone.

The girl blinked. “But then you wouldn’t met him. So why now-”

“I no wanna!” The blue-haired Prime interrupted with a pout and some whining, further giving out the little plan employed by her daughter.

The devious ordeal was fairly simple; by connecting Matt Newcastle to ‘boredom’, Geecku was naturally alienated by the unpleasant emotion and so _she wouldn’t try to learn more about this peculiar human._

And that meant no irritation for tomorrow’s little reunion.

_**Hopefully, Minos is prepared to realize that she had indeed found out about his new phone number. She just wanted to talk about many, many things with him after all~!** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be fair, I think you could have tried to do something about Matt and the lovely Bunny. While Ms. Rudiger and Mr. Hawthorne are meant to be, I don't see why you couldn't have gone for the polyamorous route with them.
> 
> "It wouldn't have worked well and... I'm not 'that' much into it."
> 
> Yet Stark Rebirth does have some curious Polyamory-
> 
> "That is more wholesome than anything and... I've plans about it."
> 
> Meh, at least you didn't portray me as an over-protective parent.
> 
> "I'm waiting for Sirio to come along in the story before having you do something along that line."
> 
> Could be interesting but... do you think we should tell your readers whom I've visited to know about this info?
> 
> "I think... you did? Or maybe it was just in FF. Well, if you wish to-"
> 
> Well, Apogeo was quite amused when I decided to ask about her little meddling and... let's just say she wasn't glad to learn that someone 'forgot' about their true mission in the world. She is calm right now but... she is watching closely our little human.
> 
> "I hope you treat him well-"
> 
> His well-being is our greatest interest. But I appreciate the fact you care for them.
> 
> "He is my creation, I care for all of them."


	12. Remake the Past, Prepare the Future

**~Miles’ POV~**

As much as a certain Cat Prime would have liked to spend the first few hours of the day drinking some booze to try to numb the itching guilt that was still there to remind him of his recent mistakes, Miles was surprised of himself when he decided to accept the curious offer forwarded by one of the humans in town.

Matt Newcastle was odd. The good kind of odd. 

His appearance and trust-inspiring attitude, coupled with his well-cared appearance for a worker at one of the farms nearby the small settlement, was more than enough to create a certain charisma around the individual; enough to see young man find this person to be worth of some positive considerations and some thoughts.

Especially since he hadn’t exploited any of the various circumstances that saw Miles dealing with the human in a state of utter drunkness.

It’s been a while since he had someone to talk to, to rant to or… even trust. The little drunk rant was fragmented, but he could remember some genuine attention and caution from the human as to not ask anything overly-personal.

The difficult days were almost gone, Miles could say with a certain degree of certainty, his arrival here in Gossamer truly bringing an end to the unpleasant worry of being caught and forced to deal with a direct confrontation with those he had left behind in Prism.

Hope was still trying to reach for him through his phone, leaving a dozen or more unanswered calls and the more he saw her name on the device, the more the young man felt convinced to throw it as far away as possible.

So when the young Prime first heard of this possible chance of distracting himself away from the pressing concerns, the former student couldn’t help but sound interested at the predicament offered as he was also surprised but elated by the possible lack of any work exploitation over the reasons behind this little trip.

It had all started with rather the curious situation, Miles had been wandering on the barely-awake town’s streets with the intention of reaching the local bar, but ending up finding both the human and Minos along his path to another round of alcohol.

The two pulling at a carriage full of various food and other edible farm-related products, stopping as they had also noticed his proximity 

The scene was funny as it was clear that the Bull Prime was pulling most of the labor, quite easily so as his expression seemed to show no hints of difficulty with the job. 

Miles had to bit down a snort as to not chuckle at the evident difference in force between the two, Matt seeming blissfully unaware of who was ‘really’ carrying the carriage in that specific moment.

Still, the Cat was confused by the fact that this town had something like a farmer’s market, thinking that there was still something a little more sophisticated to go through the process of selling edible stuff.

Yet it was still set in an old-fashioned way, much to his partially-veiled surprise and… that wasn’t even it.

When he had accepted the offer and followed the two at the large square where the market was set to happen into, he had expected Minos to be joining the human in the work itself, maybe as a ‘friend-favor’ kind of business as to not pay the Bull.

Yet once again, Matt proved to be someone with a compelling morality as he merely spent some time chatting with Minos and the younger Prime without ever asking for them to do anything else.

It was talking, only talking.

There was no haggling with the clients, no breaks to have either of the two Primes to deal with the situation alone and… there was no trick.

The situation was genuinely a win-win for the Cat, something to spend some time without thinking of the past while also getting to know more about the town he was supposed to be staying for an indefinite amount of time and… about the two fellows he ended up meeting on his first day here.

Minos was very limited with his topics, mostly because certain subjects were out of his comprehension, either because he was still catching up with society (he had mentioned something about having been ‘wandering out of civilization for some time’ and so was unable to understand everything at first sight) and he was also secretive about his past.

Not something that Miles considered to be bad, everyone had the right to keep silent about the previous ‘life’; Especially if he was one of the blatant examples of this predicament.

Curious yes, but the Cat Prime didn’t even try to poke at the limit for the sake of not alienating the only interesting group in town he had the luck of meeting this early on in his new life here in Gossamer.

Most of the locals here were old people or individuals that barely understood much outside of rural education and entertainment, the bar providing some amusing but easy to forget moments about the inhabitants frequenting it but…

That wasn’t something that Minos and Matt were. They broke from the mold and stood out like a unique duo in this settlement compared to the rest of the people living here.

The human was the one that truly caught his attention with the vast knowledge about urban life, the young man ending up discovering that the blond had spent some years of his life as a simple city citizen, just a few by the countryside.

More curiosity ended up bringing even more questions to his lips. 

His usual trip to the bar was now completely forgotten because Miles started to get bolder and bolder with his inquiries, still minding himself from exceeding over some topics that seemed to be far too ‘dangerous’ to even point out in a casual manner.

Soon the Cat Prime was granted some more glimpses of Matt’s life, some stemming from his years spent as a journalists and a reporter, while others bringing up some interest about the reasons behind the warmth coming from the human and directed at him.

It was surprising at first, then it got quite irritating but…ultimately, he was just confused by the few hints brought up by the answers he had listened to and the lack of chances of getting more without sounding too nosy over the matter.

To think that Matt was someone that broke from the ‘easy’ way straight to a ‘bright’ future, someone that had for a motivation still unknown to Miles gone ‘ran’ away from his past life and became someone else for the sake of… bringing a positive change to his life.

At first, the young Prime had wanted to know more about ‘what’ had caused the human to take that sharp turn away from a good job position and a comfortable lifestyle, but it was evident by the tension rising at the mentioning of his past that it wouldn’t have been a good move from his part.

The Cat was sure that it wasn’t arrogance calling for a better opportunity, there was no regret dripping from the human’s words about leaving the elevated road to prosperity, actually there was much relief at the mention of his little ‘downfall’ into becoming a simple farm-worker.

Then it was the turn of… foul connections that made things go south. It wouldn’t be difficult to imagine the friendly man having to endure some negative reactions from some of his peers as it was something characteristics in high-tier schools.

Prism Uni had been ‘mostly’ untouched by this issue, but other older establishments had to suffer through some little corruption; He could still remember Hope mentioning some tough life at High School, the US system having worsened in the last decade and bringing back some of the old-world issues with it.

This theory was debunked by a careful trick of questions, Miles went slow and cautious as he tried to ask about any difficult predicaments with fellow students and the answers only ended up  _ painting him a shade closer to his own problem. _

It was evident that this was one of the reasons driving the human to be this kind, but…

Even without much evidence, the Cat Prime could see that it was just  _ part _ of the overall drive pushing the man to be this interested on his plight.

There wasn’t any unnecessary pitying over his own situation, nor he was given some major suggestions over a legitimate attempt to connect via their similar pasts.

Rather, instead of using it to form an immediate connection, Matt was genuinely trying to get to know him before trying for anything like that.

Sure, there interest was born from the parallels, but the human had been mindful to not jump in action with this predicament and not spark any unwanted escalation over this topic.

The kind of Status Quo that Miles was more than happy to keep for the sake of not bringing back up any of the still-sore memories up to the discussion.

Two full hours passed and soon the subjects shifted to a particularly curious bit about the human.

It was all about the lovely waitress working at the local bar, the gorgeous Bunny Prime that he couldn’t help but ogle once or twice in a while.

Alcohol did nothing to restrain his little staring, his mind somehow managing to get full ‘reminders’ of those few glances he would spare at the young woman.

But the way the girl was brought to this specific conversation was far from what he could have expected, nor known from just… nothing.

While Matt didn’t seem the kind of guy to engage in any adventurous activity, the human was still capable of endearing women with his charismatic attitude and genuine trustworthiness; that is what happened with Bunny Prime, the girl ending up spending  _ a full day _ of ‘unknown activities’ with the blond.

The man was blushing for some time at the mentioning of the quite-recent matter, but Miles could also see some truthful happiness connected to the matter.

It was a feeble reminder of something else he had known for some time, the one thing that had connected so tightly to Hope and had gotten him fighting for three years of failures.

The girl that had been just his friend didn’t certainly shy away from giving up more of her whole self to show how much she was attached to him.

Efforts that had also kept him thinking of a future with the girl… if she hadn’t been so clear in saying from the very beginning that she was only interested in Shin.

The little genius didn’t have any fault about the infatuation Hope had towards him, he just had the qualities that best enticed the rising singer into crushing and maybe even falling in love with him.

But while Miles listened to her constant reminder of this predicament… he couldn’t help but also consider numerous oddities happening along their relationship that easily contradicted those words.

He could still remember when he had impulsively tried to investigate over Tobias’ sudden attachment to their newest teacher and how Hope had suggested going in a ‘fake date’ to stalk the two around at one of the amusement parks in Prism.

His focus had been mostly directed at the main targets, yet the Cat Prime did easily notice how annoyed the young woman started to get as they continued with the pursuit rather than relaxing around the various games or activities allowed by the stands there.

There was also to consider that lovely finale that saw fireworks and… ‘fireworks’ for the two of them.

If that had been just a fake date, then Miles was entirely compelled to see what kind of ‘real date’ Hope would have given to him if…

Things had gone differently.

Some of his failures were beyond his reach but the Cat Prime would be lying if he tried to tell himself that it wasn’t his fault in certain cases.

It was all about intent, willpower and… sensible thinking.

Three requirements that sadly were ignored, burned and left to rot in the last three years as his mind had been so railroaded towards a determined kind of success that he forgot that life was more than succeeding at school.

Maybe-

Maybe that was what that night with Tiggs should have dignified instead of a full cessation of things.

But the time of ‘maybes’ was over, long forgotten and left to him to merely contemplate than deal with it with how he felt right now.

He didn’t have the means, both from within his body and on a more materialistic way to do something about the situation.

…

Miles blinked, golden eyes returning to reality quick enough to notice that both dudes were now staring at him with a worried lock… for good reasons too.

Head leaned forward and shoulders slouching down, he looked the most pitiful sight possible in that square and… he blinked.

“I was thinking,” The Cat replied almost too suddenly, his mind almost groaning at the dumb excuse. “About something personal.”

‘As if that would actually work, you moron!’ His brain was swift to criticize and Minos looked fairly confused over this reaction… while Matt merely nodded at him.

“If it’s personal, I don’t see why we should ask,” The human mused quietly before pausing a moment to nod. “Of course, whatever you weren’t thinking isn’t anything bad for you or someone else-”

“N-No.” ‘Yes, Hope isn’t certainly happy for your departure.’

Miles almost flinched at the inner sass, his mind just sparing no hesitation at throwing guilty memories left and right.

So, instead of letting the conversation die here and let this hesitation take over, the young Prime pushed forward while praying for the best outcome.

“I-I may have a little personal question, actually,” His throat tightened, suddenly feeling sore and aching, yet far from truly getting him freezing now of all times. “It’s… about a friend of mine.”

They didn’t speak at this, letting Miles have the chance of properly explain the situation.

Starting with a sigh.

“I’ve… left Prism in a hurried way and I ended up cutting contacts with those _I know that lives there,_ ” He paused for a moment, eyes showing resignation at the fact that now there was no ‘going back, then he continued. “Friends that are surely angry at my decision of saying nothing and… there is this girl.”

Matt nodded while Minos seemed to look surprised for some reason, realization shining in his red eyes.

“She is- _no, was_ my closest friend at Prism Uni and… after what I’ve done, I don’t think she would want to talk to me,” He sighed, eyes closing in shame at how he had dealt with his ‘escape’, how he had ruined so many things all in a single day. “Especially with how things had gone and-”

“Calm down for a second,” Matt intervened, noticing some tension rising from the younger man. “And let’s get this situation summarized properly.”

Miles frowned at the interjection but gave a slow nod at the human 

“You left Prism Uni in a hurry, you were so _fast_ with leaving the city that you didn’t have the time to say anything to anyone,” The blond muttered calmly. “And you couldn’t… call them after leaving? Don’t you have any time here or-”

“I don’t want to- to cause more problems by trying to apologize,” He replied softly. “I know that… I did a huge mistake, a massive one but I know that if I try to call them… everything would crash even more.”

“Or the opposite,” Minos finally said with a sigh. “You are young, Miles. If there is something that many people do when they are young it’s mistakes.”

“But if you just give up like this, without even trying, you are never going to find out if you end up failing or not with this endeavor,” The human continued with a small smile. “It happens that life is a tough thing to face on a daily basis, that days seems to lack any chance of being successful and that the future looks so dark… but that is why friends exist.”

...What?

“You are the kind of guy that appreciates people over some formal business, like studying and working,” Matt pressed on with a wider smile. “But you care for people. You care enough to feel guilty over what had happened with your actions, the ramifications from what you did.”

The Cat blinked and nodded again. “I… I see, but… what I’m supposed to do then?”

“Try,” The Bull answered curtly.

The blond nodded. “You need to give it a try, no matter how catastrophic things could turn out to be… you can say that you still tried.”

His jaws slightly dropped at the pep-talk, not expecting things to escalate to this degree.

He had expected some nagging for more information, maybe with the excuse of giving him the best advice and… yet the two had been compelled to give support out of little.

They didn’t know about the immense idiocy he had pulled, they didn’t know how much rightfully guilty he was about the stunt he had pulled and…

Yet they still gave him the benefit of the doubt over the situation.

Miles blinked again, feeling confused and aimless for just a moment, just like he had been… back then.

When his years at Prism began, the first day where things seemed already so horrible but unbearable.

_ But then he ended up meeting Hope and the others. _

He could remember encountering Shin, Vixy, Tiggs, Davin and his girls, Tobias and… then he could remember how much they tried to help in the days prior to his ‘betrayal’.

Even annoying people like Angel and Tiare had shown interest in seeing him survive and succeed the conclusion of their years of school.

They wanted him to not be left behind, Davin even trying to bribing the teacher of that last exam and…

The Prime stopped as he felt a hand reaching out for his shoulder, Matt was giving him a patient smile as he patted comfortably at him and…

Miles blinked as his sight became a little blurry, some tears already falling.

How long since he had thought about this in that specific light? How long since he had forgotten of the best of the last three years?

It was a confirmation that he had been indeed a moron about the subject, that his decision had been ill-picked and…

Yet he couldn’t back away now. He just couldn’t mend the true damage of his own mistakes.

_ But maybe- _

It was a chance, a slight glimmer of  _ hope _ about bringing peace to the restlessness keeping him awake at night, nagging at him to end this tormented period of insecurity and self-hate.

Maybe, maybe he can really give it a try.

Another hour passed, a mix of light topics to bring the discussion back to a somewhat calming tone as Miles happily decided to join in with his own comments about some funny situations about the two other men.

Conversations weren’t as blunt as booze was, but it definitively brought him a sense of clarity that now seemed well-ready to give him a solution to his problems.

He felt sure now, a single chance now left.

After the market had come to close and his two new _ friends _ had left for their own activities, the young Prime started to make his way back home through the now-bustling streets of the town, his mind somewhat lightened of some inner burden. 

But he wasn’t planning to spend that day idle or away from his responsibilities as his finger was softly hovering over the ‘call’ button of his phone.

His eyes blinked down as his hand brought the device right by his ear, a small smile forming as he mustered every bit of bravery gained from that motivational talk he had been main subject of.

He pressed the button, the call beginning as he waited for her to pick up.

Moments of quiet passed before she replied, her voice appearing so surprised yet also happy.

His smile widened and… he finally spoke to Hope.

_**And from that very day, Miles Lionheart brought back the vitality that he had so forgotten for so long.** _

\----------d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d--------

**~Matt’s POV~**

We had finished at the market pretty earlier than usual as Minos had asked me to.

I had to be fairly quick in selling the stuff offered by Las Lindas, the products being sold to a modest pace that gave me just the chance of closing down two hours earlier than usual and I was then led by the Bull back to his home.

As we ventured in the little path that took us out of town, the Prime started to explain why he had requested two hours off from my schedule and why it had to happen by his home.

Naerie had called him, bringing some good news but also some ‘bad’ ones about my curious and relatively-complex case.

The good bit was that there was indeed some major hints having been discovered and that someone else (also important) would be joining her efforts to bring a final solution to this mystery once and for all.

The bad news were connected to the fact this new addition to the investigation wasn’t someone that Minos felt elated to be around and… night-calls?

I was confused over the general uneasiness sported by the Bull, my own mind trying to wrap up around the sudden shift in his usually-calm attitude but no guess could come close to what could have gotten the man to appear unhappy about this new development.

I decided to not ask him personally, feeling like the predicament itself was bigger than I was thinking it to be.

Once we had left the carriage by the courtyard and we entered his home, I was led inside the living room, the Prime starting to tinker around the TV and I could see something curious on the screen.

Instead of the usual channels of entertainment, I could see the device connecting to a ‘communication array’, sporting just some names on the list that I was sure were the contacts Minos was aware of.

Moments passed as the Bull selected the curiously-named ‘Important Businesses Only’, the monitor soon changed, showing some process of establishing connection with the other side of the ‘call’ and then it blinked to show two individuals on the other side.

Minos reached back to the sofa where I was currently sitting, taking a quick seat beside me as I studied the two women I could see and their curious resemblance in certain aspects of their appearances.

The one that jumped to the attention first and foremost had a light-brown fur with a small patch of a lighter shade around her left eye, she also had long red-hair.

Now that I looked at it closely, her eyelids were half-closed, enough to hide away her eyes’ color.

Soon my sight lowered to her simple blue dress and…

I felt a blush burning briefly as I noticed that, while it wasn’t a highly suggestive style, the cleavage was still there to ‘provoke’ a reaction.

The woman’s current smile seemed to widen in glee and I found myself quickly looking away, now sure that she had scored a minor victory with me looking right where she wanted.

The other female looked more composed, _ a little _ too much as she seemed to be mostly blank with her current expression.

Her fur was a pale-yellow, with a curious birthmark that resembled a four-pointed star on her forehead. She had red-hair like the fellow female Prime, but her eyes were visible and of a light shade of blue.

I had to will myself to look away from her cerulean orbs, feeling like falling inside a calm ocean just for a moment.

She was wearing less formal clothes, a hoodie that did well in keeping her figure covered and a pair of leggings covering her legs.

I glanced up at her face once again, this time feeling like…

Like I knew who she was.

I blinked, the girl staring at me calmly but I could see some curiosity and some anxiety.

My mind lost a few moments of silence but then I was offered a quick possible guess, one that certainly would match with her.

“Matt-” “Naerie-”

We both stopped, my body tensing a little as I realized that we spoke at the same time.

Naerie didn’t seem to be fazed by the unexpected situation by how calm she seemed from the look on her face, but I saw her shoulders tensing up too just like mine did.

I blinked again, this time leaning my head a little bit forward before speaking once more.

“I’m sorry-” “I’m sorry-”

Another standoff, more tension from both of us as we ended up talking at the same time.

I heard a muffled snort from the side, Minos looking away for some reason while hiding his face from me.

Meanwhile, the other woman was giggling at the scene, drawing to herself a look from Naerie.

The situation was relatively calm but incredibly awkward, so instead of waiting for this phenomenon to happen, I decided to intervene quickly.

“I guess that’s a way to start a meeting?” 

I could have said something better, but considering the previous cases of trying to make something coherent I merely decided to go ahead with the first thing that was on my mind.

The girl blinked and nodded. “I suppose so.”

The woman by her side seemed to calm, smiling happily and nodding. 

“Truly an amusing beginning, but I don’t think this can’t be _just_ entertainment.” She said with with a pleased tone. “But before we truly start this little thing here, I’m Lady Ambar.”

I frowned at the curious title, but returned the introduction with a nod. “Matt Newcastle.”

The woman giggled again and returned the nod, glancing at Naerie. “And before things get needlessly complicated, Naerie here is my lovely daughter.” Ambar explained with a grin. “So there might be some comments that I might throw either at her or  _ at you _ , Mattia, that could end up in more than requited teasing~.”

...What?

The younger Prime sighed. “Mother, I think it’s time to-”

“Yes, yes,” The Bear Prime interrupted with a bright smile. “I guess we should skip the informalities for the sake of rushing this boring matter as quickly at possible.”

I was particularly confused by Ambar’s bubbly personality, taken back as I tried to get hold over her incredible forwardness and bluntness.

“Matt, I think I should offer you a warning,” Naerie finally had her attention back at me. “We can’t give you a full explanation over your situation, the means that gave us some clues were incredibly cryptic over what really happened that night and some of the information we have recovered aren’t truly recoverable for some reasons.”

I slowly nodded, taking in the fact that there was indeed something big going on.

I mean, being flunk at a completely different universe at a completely different time was… incredibly odd on itself, maybe this should have been a strong clue over the immensity behind the mystery of that night.

“What we can say is… that you’re in no way close to experience any harm or danger,” Ambar continued with a slightly more serious tone than before. “Your safety has been guaranteed to us, your present here wasn’t warranted by any dark force trying to rule over the world and beyond!”

She ended with a giggle, the boisterous finale to that sentence bringing some dry looks on her.

Well, that was still a good thing… yes? That meant that the cause behind my presence here is not a bad person…

But who could it be and-

_ How do they even know that I was sent here by a non-evil being? _

The only supposition was that either Ambar or Naerie, or both, are aware of the identity of this person and they couldn’t divulge it for some specific reasons.

Before I could ask about this curious topic, it was Naerie that jumped in.

“We can say that your presence here isn’t casual,” She said with a resolute tone. “Nor is the fact that your current belongings are either locked or have been left being before that night,” 

“So there is actually a known reason for me being here in Gossamer?” I asked with a confused look, still failing to understand some of the phrasing used by both mother and daughter.

“There is a reason for you to be ‘here’, yes,” Ambar hummed mirthfully. “But the same reason is why we can’t tell you what it actually is.”

“What?” I intervened bluntly, I could already feel the beginning of a massive headache rearing its ugly mug at the confusing cryptic tones.

But before I could even say anymore, I was once again bypassed by someone else.

“What mother is trying to say is…” Naerie tried to explain, pausing a moment to sigh as she processed the best wording possible. “Is that we don’t truly know why this specific individual brought you here in Neo-Earth.”

I blinked at that explanation, my confusion increasing to an unfair degree.

The older woman smiled suspiciously but nodded. “As a matter of fact, the truth has been withheld from us as a mean to guarantee your safety.”

...What? What is she talking about? 

Why would I need to have something to ‘guarantee my safety’?

“So this individual, which I can’t know the name, is responsible for-” I tried to summarize, only to be interrupted.

“Bringing you to this specific dimension.” Minos concluded for me, causing me to look at him in surprise and minor panic.

Red eyes glanced my way just barely but there was no hints of anger in those. 

“I understand that this isn’t a mere case of ‘teleportation’ and I know that Matt was pretty much clueless about many thing in town,” He stated with a convinced tone. “So I can see that this more than just a casual phenomenon and I can only suppose who it could have been.”

I glanced down at the floor in that precise moment, remembering asking Minos about some of the topics I had learned from the library, some of the information that I had yet to memorize and understand beyond my previous cultural knowledge of the world.

Neo-Earth was much more… bigger than normal Earth and not just in terms of size.

The Prime Continent was considered as big as the Americas, with numerous cultures that spanned from ‘new and exotic’ to ‘similar but improved’ from the ones known from old Earth.

Before this discussion could continue any further, I noticed that the door of the room behind the two women opened just a little, only for a blue-haired head to pop out with a golden-eyed curious look scanning through the area.

Both Ambar and Naerie were distracted as they were explaining the situation a little more to Minos, my attention being completely directed away from their voices and right to this completely new individual.

Said intruder sneaked inside the room silently, her eyes keeping contact on me as she started to slowly approach the two Bear Primes, still hiding away from them by tiptoeing close enough to get a proper sight over the screen.

She was wearing a simple sleeveless shirt and some shorts, she had no shoes and she looked more like a lizard… or an amphibian?

Tilting her head to the side, she narrowed her eyes inquisitively at me as if trying to get a reaction out of me.

I frowned and continued to keep the staring contest going for some time, still ignoring the words exchanged between the three other Primes.

Some more time passed, a curious smile appearing on her face and I smirked myself a little, finding the intruder to be fairly adorable because of her current stance.

It was like a feral predator, ready to go for a pounce, but instead of a brutal demise, I could expect some tactical cuddles from the cute-looking Prime.

But before this could have continued, I felt Minos tensing up without notice, the sudden movement catching the attention of the blue-haired Prime, causing her to direct her focus to the cause of that ‘disturbance’.

Her jaws dropped in pure surprise and her eyes shone a bright but lovely light.

She almost jumped towards the monitor, rushing through both Ambar and Naerie but stopping just a few inches away from the screen.

“Minnow~!”

The Bull sighed tiredly and nodded. “Hello Geecku,” He replied dully, the girl seemingly uncaring as she started to giggle happily.

Ambar sighed patiently at the girl, while Naerie actually frowned at the scene, the young Bear Prime looking fairly surprised at the presence of this new individual.

“Geecku dear,” The older woman finally spoke, looking a little nervous. “I remember that you did promise me that you wouldn’t have come here during this reunion-”

“But there is Minnow!” Geecku interrupted loudly and needily with a brief pout plastered on her face. “W-Why would I miss him?”

Then she turned to look at me with a curious and quizzical expression. “And who is you?”

I hesitated at first, my attention span having dropped dramatically since things had escalated to this specific predicament, my brain having some trouble taking in the crescendo.

Seriously, what I should do with her? Maybe be honest?

“I’m… Matt?” I offered with some hesitation, unsure if it would be enough.

Golden eyes widened in sudden realization and then the girl shot another accusing frown at Ambar. 

“You said he boring!” She stated with some irritation, then she stared back at me. “You are… interesting.”

I was completely dumbfounded by what I was listening to. 

Maybe it was her adorable broken English or maybe I was unaware of some context about the situation that would certainly bring more clarity over Geecku’s presence here, but I was close to speechless at these interactions, my mind having trouble keeping up at so much happening in so little.

So, instead of keeping quiet and escalate the situation… I just replied with some genuine voice.

I mean, that did sound like a compliment, so why shouldn’t I comment about it?

“Thank you?” I said with a skeptical tone, her smirk barely fazed by the confused glint I was now displaying on my face.

“You welcome~.” The blue-haired Prime replied with a sing-song voice before giggling, causing my frown to deepen a little more and…

I turned my sight at Minos, the Bull looking fairly surprised at the situation. “Can you tell me more about-”

He nodded, his eyes now directed at the smiling girl. “Geecku is currently a ward to Ambar, someone that she takes care of because of how… destructive and chaotic she can get without a minder.”

At this depiction, Ambar sighed. “She isn’t that bad,” She commented while giving a hug to the seemingly-angry and pouting Prime. “She just loves life in a way freer than many do.”

“I angry at you.” The younger Prime stated, her voice muffled by having her face pressed on the woman’s chest.

But despite the attempt of the blue-haired lizard-like girl to appear annoyed, her tail was wagging like a happy dog’s one, quietly enjoying the head-patting the older redhead was giving to her.

Soon the young woman was smiling in the embrace, seemingly forgetting about what had just happened and… leaving the opportunity to Naerie to once again resume the serious talk.

“While we can’t offer much more clues over the matter, we can still offer assistance if needed.” The young Prime stated calmly. “Tomorrow morning, a small package containing a new phone with our contacts will arrive at the farm you are living by. In case of emergencies, you are meant to use it to call and request help.”

I slowly nodded, thinking about the fact I had yet to find a solution about my phone and that this offer sure would help me… for some reason.

The device was still stuck on that password-walled barrier, but it didn’t seem to have any battery issues.

I had tried keeping it on for ten hours but the counter never descended beyond the current level and it still is stuck at the same level I had left it several days ago.

“So this is just for emergencies, nothing else-”

“You can use it to speak with others without having any limitations,” Ambar hummed as she kept coaxing Geecku into relaxing in her hold. “It’s just for the best that if you are calling either me or Naerie that you have a good enough reason, something incredibly important.”

“Still, is giving me a phone for free actually convenient?” 

“If it’s about keeping you safe, then yes,” Naerie replied with a curious hint of steel in her tone, the girl looking at her mother. “After all, it’s a duty of my mother as the High Prime to protect the inhabitants living in the Newer World.”

I blinked, ready to press a little more about the importance of having a full-fledged phone, about keeping the current situation of having to use Minos’ but… then I would be the one abusing the Bull’s friendship as the device was his to use and not a game for me to have whenever I feel like it.

It was in that precise moment that two words finally ended up reaching my brain.

I tensed a little and looked at both women, first at Naerie and then at Ambar.

I blinked again. “You mean to tell me that Ambar is-”

The Bear Prime smiled and nodded as she continued hugging the now napping Geecku.

“I’m the High Prime, Lady Ambar,” She re-introduced herself, smirking mirthfully at my surprised expression. “How does it feel to be talking with a world leader?”

I was stunned by this question, my mind freezing for a few more moments before I hummed in thought.

“I… guess it’s pretty-”

Interesting?

Awesome?

Amazing?

Or-

“Normal,” I concluded with a frown, Ambar tensing up at the adjective and actually turning to look at me, her eyelids opening a little more to reveal her blue eyes.

“Normal?” She parroted, looking impressed by the comment. “This is the first time I’ve heard this comment in a long time now...”

I blinked as she giggled once again, this time the woman turning at her daughter. “Naerie, I think I will visit Gossamer so-”

“Absolutely no,” Minos stated with a frown, his arm reaching around my neck and settling protectively on my shoulders. “You have paperwork to do.”

The High Prime looked surprised once more, but this time she seemed to ease up a little instead of seeking another escalation.

“Well, I guess I will have to delay the visit but… I sure will see how are you doing, Minos,” The woman replied with a promise. “I hope you will enjoy today’s night-call.”

The final bit seemed to be enough to cause the Bull to shiver momentarily, her tone emphasizing some punishment but… I couldn’t see any in her words.

Before the discussion truly concluded, Ambar decided to give one last warning before closing the call.

“By the way, Mattia,” The woman said with a calm tone. “While my daughter and I are unaware of how to solve your phone’s lock, my dear friend did tell me something to keep an eye on.”

I blinked. “And… that is?”

“The lock will be undone _**only when all hopes are gone**_.” The High Prime replied quietly and with a small smile. “So yes, you should be wary that things could potentially go south and I ask you to keep an eye on yourself.”

I nodded slowly at this notice, the woman gracing one last smile while Naerie merely waved at me, a gesture I returned at the connection dropped. 

With this important meeting gone and done, I couldn’t help but feel like this explanation had just ended up giving me a terrible news to persist.

Bad things were still going to happen, either with me getting hurt or…

_**It would have to be someone else.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "I'm back in another chapter~"
> 
> And you have been a responsible woman, I'm impressed.
> 
> "Eh, I remind you that I'm old enough to be-"
> 
> My great-great-great-grandma?
> 
> "...I might have walked into that-"
> 
> You may have.
> 
> "But I remind you that things are yet to finish and I will get my... revenge?"
> 
> Hmm, okay.
> 
> "And don't ignore me like that, trying to appear all cool and hip."
> 
> About cool and hip, next time I should really start punctually instead of an hour later.
> 
> "Such a shame that you get tempted and distracted so easily~."
> 
> Shut up...


	13. Crossing thoughts

**Chapter 13: Crossing thoughts**

**~Alej’s POV~**

As she continued to stare at the stack of files that was growing before her blue eyes, Alejandra couldn’t do much but sigh tiredly at the intense work-day that was certainly going to be today.

It wasn’t anything worth of immense worries as she had planned to go through this little issue one way or another  for that very week, the rewards much more important that the difficult predicament.

Her office was now bustling with activity as Tootsie and other subordinates were quickly leaving numerous reports by her desk;  papers that were coming from the group of technicians sent to study the state of the company’s workers and machines

The progress behind  this important project she was trying to pass through for the sake of bringing a new boost to the sales was  appearing positive.

Just like she had expected from her earlier calculation, but she would need much more to convince the rest of the leadership to approve those changes.

The presence of  the  numerous evidence over the large improvements the businesswoman had planned all within such an arduous upgrade was meant to show some enticing data to the still-neutral board of directors.

Her company was going fast and well with its growing rate, but the constant whining coming from the few individuals that held some of its major shares was now starting to take a dent at her patience and integrity.

There were already impressive results from her hard-work as she had spent so much time to make sure all her changes were to bring the optimal outcome from the various concerns brought up in the last two to three reunions.

But nothing had seemed to produce any satisfactory reactions from any of the members of this group, only some minor praises that tended to bring up some flaws within the development itself rather than complimenting the overall success.

At this point, Alejandra was well-aware that these were just attempts to undermine her decisions within the company, beyond the mere formality and work-logic that professionalism dictated.

It has been subtle at first, barely perceivable as they had bothered to keep themselves from revealing their cards so quickly and without a proper base to start with this kind of harassment.

And now s he was so  _ sure _ that the problematic behaviors displayed by those from the board were  actually blatant probes to verify  her integrity, where any of her current weaknesses lingered and where the best place to strike to gain control over the company was.

They were so quick to ignore that while  the young woman had  focused the brunt of the direct hard-work early on  and had left some of the bureaucratic details to other associates , she had also dealt with worse people than them  with her past experience and that  she had seen corruption before trying her hand at something as ambitious as trying like building something from scratch.

This just wasn’t her first rodeo, nor was she naive that everything was truly stable even with the unquestionable growth registered in the last few months, far exceeding their expectations.

The young woman started to hum quietly as her fingers began tapping at her desk, trying to distract herself away from the non-negligible tower of documents piling up and from the negative thoughts that right now were annoyingly pressing within her mind.

Alejandra still had so much to do today, trying to get _distracted_ from the burden and with the wrong topics too wasn’t something she truly expected to do in these occasions.

A yawn was building up behind her lips, but she fought it back with some efforts. 

It was still fairly early in the morning and even a few hours spent going through the regular duties of CEO, she was still far from completing the backbone of today’s rare situation.

Her mind was soon gearing up for the mechanical job that was about scanning through the documents and compile with the proper signing the entire burden ahead of her.

With her dark-inked pen held tightly within her palm, the Cow Prime began trying to deal with the first round of paperwork for the day and… it went pretty well until the first break,  enjoying a brief pause away from what was supposed to be the main issue for the rest of the day.

She had initially forgotten that the bulk of the tower was made by simple data that didn’t require any major reading from her,  thus making it a little more easy for her to quickly go through the files. 

The entire documentation having checked beforehand either by Tootsie or by one of the other subordinates going through the  reports prior to handing it to her.

With a quiet hum building up  within her throat during the activity , the young woman started to carefully blitz through the intense session of signing,  her  attention never  straying away from the important bits of each single file  inside the ‘tower’ .

While it was  substantially easy to sign the already-verified papers , the quantity of the issue made it up for the intensity of the overall situation  and so she was forced to deal with quite the continuous signing without much time to rest.

After four hours of constant signing and with lunch break giving her some reprieve from the still-growing pile, Alejandra decided to spend some time sipping at the cup of warm coffee her assistant had brought to her office  while carefully nursing her hands as her fingers were starting to get sore at the lengthy writing session.

Tootsie was staring in silent surprise as she noticed that the already-signed tower had grown to a noticeable level.

It was far from reaching the height of the one that was left unfinished, but it was still enough to warrant some wide-eyed reaction from the Mouse Prime.

The blonde blinked back to reality the moment she noticed that her boss was looking at her, her cheeks reddening  and her violet eyes widening in possible embarrassment for just  that very moment moment,  concluding with a fake cough to divert the attention away from the awkward reaction.

“S-So, I think the pace is going well for us, ma’am,” The Mouse commented carefully, her voice sounding just a little nervous. “Do you think we are doing alright considering the tight schedule we have?”

The Cow Prime hummed positively, gracing a nod  at that legitimate question while she let the coffee bring some energy back to her tired mind.

Time was very limited and Tootsie had been one of the few ones that had been working hard to produce the material she was currently reviewing, of course the girl should get some little morale boost for her loyal work.

“Considering that this is the major obstacle for our first target in this month,” Alejandra muttered placidly, looking genuinely proud of how the signing was going. “I think the pace is more than acceptable with the expectations.”

The bright smile appearing on the girl’s face somewhat lifting up her spirit, a small smirk replying back to the other occupants’ expression before the woman glanced once again at the insufferable amount of paper still left to do with a little huff.

“Still, we will have to keep up this pace for the rest of the day if we want to deal with this first obstacle.”

The comment was quick to deflate both Primes, yet Alejandra’s confidence over their success didn’t waver even once at this very though t as some counter-thoughts did make their presence known in her consciousness.

They had faced worse cases than this and she wouldn’t be lying in thinking that this particular predicament didn’t come anywhere close to the immense concerns that were placed upon the creation of the company from so little money and opportunity.

Yet they had managed through it all with sheer willpower and undeniable pride,  never backing a second from the real prize and... now they had this new phase they needed to deal with to finally unleash more of the potential held within the corporation.

Will it be an easy feat to accomplish with the pressure  continuing to  build up  because of  some vultures within her own organization  trying to undermine her authority ? 

Of course not,  b ut she couldn’t certainly just lie down and let everything crumble apart because of the non-negligible odds encircling around them.

And that is why it was best for her to keep up a tough and analytical mask in front of this threatening scenario, not just for herself but for the company and those that believed in this project like Tootsie.

Something that will surely leave her stressed and tired by the end of the long day, but it was one of the displeasing setbacks the woman was willing to take, especially with how high determination was running nowadays.

She couldn’t help but also remember how she regained some confidence from doing so little, such a simple activity that… actually granted her some incredibly-needed positiveness.

The lovely lunch spent at Diana’s home had been a refreshing way to bring some relief within her private life; the turmoil within her over the unpleasant encounter of some time ago having slightly reduced as the young woman knew that some chances to mend the division was there to be taken.

All because of some interest she had over the current only worker at the farm owned by her surrogate mother.

Matt Newcastle was still a unique individual compared to many  other candidates she had the chance of personally met in her rising career in the dairy business and it wasn’t just because of the fact he was a human.

If she pondered over the vast range of tasks his place in Las Lindas  would entail , both as an official worker and as a helper around the house to lessen Randal’s own duties with his mother, Alejandra could say without much hesitation  nor too kindly that he had been a grand boon to the declining farm.

The steady growth wasn’t the same as Alexandria, but there was a peculiar skyrocketing variable that just brought surprise and confusion over the economics behind such a recovery. 

He had been there to take the burden without sporting any  visible discomfort over the unfair starting point  he was forced to deal with , while also  masterfully hiding some of the uncertainty directed at  the owner’ s health .

The young man  had been quite pleasant during the occasion by avoiding to intercede in the conversation she engaged with the older Prime, the food prepared by him was by far one of the most delicious treat she had the chance of trying around  and it was nice to finally spare some words with Randal after so long.

With the  little time the young woman  was supposed to maneuver around , proper delicacies  were an oddity  to experience on a normal work-day and some mass-produced snacks were used to fill her with some energy during lunch times.

Coffee was quality  content , there was no denying of that, but she couldn’t just drink only  spare herself some coffee when she felt tired.

Not only for its unhealthy effects  after over-drinking it , but also because of the inherent distaste it could bring if taken so frequently  and so vehemently to counter the usual need for energy.

Sipping once again from her cup, Alejandra found herself staring at the digital clock  carefully sitting by the edge of  her desk, blue eyes widened just a little at the realization that the pause was going to end in less than ten minutes from that point.

Ending the content of her cup, Tootsie was already done with hers and she quickly took hold of both mugs, biding a quick salute before leaving the office to deal with the used cups.

The woman sighed in her lone moment  of solitude , some cracks finally appearing on her mask as she contemplated the stress she was unfortunately facing against.

Maybe it was the very visit that had sparked this sudden distaste towards the negative effects of being an active workaholic with how her job required her utmost attention;

It’s been an avalanche of memories, of happy and sad ones that had greeted her the moment she had first seen Diana after so long.

Alejandra could remember some months ago when she had been reunited with the kind lady, her mind awed by how little the lovely woman had changed after so many years; Then in the span of a few months, Alejandra was forced to accept the bitter reality of things… again. 

His surrogate ‘mother’ was on her way to her grave and nothing could be done about it. 

The late stage of her illness made it impossible to cure, Randal had told her as much privately while she was brought by the entrance, away from Diana’s heightened ears.

The news had struck a terrible note within her brain, something about the death of the last parent-like figure giving her the worst of aches from within.

It’s been sometime that her father had died, she could remember well those moments  of quiet sadness and sorrow but…

Diana Linda had been her mother, ignoring the lack of any blood-connection between them,  and she couldn’t help but find it difficult to stomach the fact she was on her way to conclude her life because of  _ that _ sickness .

She had taken care of her in her childhood, always brought her to be at equal standing as her two children without ever asking anything out of her that wasn’t for her own good.

Bravery, wisdom and… tenacity.

Harsh moments of her life had been won all thanks to her teachings about how life itself worked,  Diana  sparing  her just  from some details,  most of those being ugly bits about  rare occurrences, things that she wasn’t supposed to even see or know about.

And now the woman was going to… disappear, the means to avoid this sudden situation having long been denied by the stubbornness coming from Diana herself.

Her sickness could have been treated in time, the older Prime having been aware of the situation long before it escalated to this point of no return but she had so willingly ignored it for no apparent reason.

…

But then again, there was actually a reason that could have brought the kind woman to this point.

Alejandra had long departed from Las Lindas when she first heard from Randal about Mora’s escape from home, her brain having to reboot multiple times in consideration regarding this specific impossibility.

Sure, there were some quarrels left unfinished between her and Diana’s eldest daughter, but those were quickly forgotten as she considered how this very predicament didn’t sound logical or even possible with the attachment the fiery girl had for her home.

Heck, Alej could remember how she would stubbornly try to stay back at home for school trips outside of her hometown, her connection to the farm having been the strongest among the young trio they formed with the Collie Prime.

‘Yet people can change’, her mind had been quick to point out, the accusation sounding more and more true as Mora failed to answer any attempts to reach out, closing up even to Randy.

That is why part of her had been interested in trying to contact her personally, genuinely interested over the fellow Cow Prime’s well-being.

Animosity could be forgotten, especially since the reasons behind it didn’t warrant the utmost hatred out of her.

Yet she didn’t feel the words coming to her about how she should handle that very situation.

Should she sound pitying, sad and sorry or calm when dealing with the runaway?

The hesitation did cost her the chances of check on the young woman as Mora ended up disappearing after a year of wandering still within Gossamer.

Worrying to a fair extent, but the constant refusal from her way to Randal’s constant attempts at getting a call going was more than enough to confirm that she was fine and possibly kicking people around.

Still, the young woman can’t certainly confirm that Mora was truly the cause behind Diana’s sudden acceptance of this illness having been far too distant from that house to know what truly had been going on while she hadn’t been there.

But now that Matt was there? Something did change, there was no reason to doubt otherwise.

Something about his posture, his optimistic but still somewhat cynical look at life, the way he sounded so confident and boisterous…

It all rang so familiar and not, her mind failing to truly grasp at the curious similarity and difference the young man had compared to Mora herself.

Both were stubborn, both were determined to an incredible fault and…

Both took different paths in their own lives.

While Mora was driven to search over the world by unsolved questions, Matt was pushed away by the horrible and cold answers life had decided to give him about pain.

A curious parallel that stemmed away the moment parents were brought up.

How odd, the Cow Prime couldn’t help but muse over as the last moments of the pause struck.

Just as Alejandra reached the culmination of this little pondering, her sight was taken by a smiling Tootsie holding her… agenda?

Blue eyes blinked at mirthful purple ones.

“Something you need to tell me, Tootsie?” She asked quietly, confused over the new development but the Mouse Prime’s amusement didn’t seem to fade before this tone as she opened the agenda and brought up the weekend, the pages of Saturday and Sunday completely empty of any appointments.

“Since we are going to have a busy week, I thought it would be convenient for you to see if that kind Miss Linda can accept us at her home,” The blonde mentioned with a giddy tone. “I bet she would let us come if you were to ask and… you would recover from this nightmare week.”

Blinking at that sudden proposition, Alejandra couldn’t help but start pondering over it as she could do with spending some time back in Gossamer, especially with her relationship with Diana still needing some more time to be brought back to its original level.

She slowly nodded, but then paused as she realized something in Tootsie’s proposal that sounded a little off and she was soon narrowing her eyes at the giddy-looking Mouse.

“Tootsie, I reckon that you wish to be invited to the place too,” The CEO mentioned, causing the younger woman to tense up in surprise and minor embarrassment. “Can you please explain why?”

The girl blinked and… sighed happily. 

“Miss Linda is one of the kindest ladies I had the chance to met, to think that she would know so much about people and… she is so funny,” Tootsie started to explain her thoughts, her grin resurfacing. “I mean, she can lighten up any occasion with her tales and I loved the cuisine. The place was also amazing to enjoy once or twice in a while.”

“And you wish to join me once again for the occasion?”

She quickly nodded, looking as eager and happy about this possibility, enough to bring Alejandra to a very simple dilemma.

Should she allow her to come by? Would Diana truly mind her coming too?

Considering the previous case, the blonde had behaved fairly well.

She had avoided going too far with the familiarity and didn’t try to poke at any of the little limits Alej had set over her presence there.

The owner of Las Lindas would undoubtedly accept her for another lunch, the Cow Prime having showed some positive reaction to the bubbly personality the Mouse was known for and it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine the two bonding even more.

Concluding her lengthy thoughts with a hum, her blue eyes were once more at the waiting expression on the girl’s face.

“I will ask if she would mind or not,” She conceded, continuing before the girl could squeak at that success. “But if she says you can’t come, I will have to abide by her request. Understood?”

The blonde nodded quickly and seemed to twitch in her standing pose before accepting the silent dismissal from her boss.

Alejandra groaned as she softly facepalmed at the situation, the quirkiness of her loyal subordinate and the developments of the last few days.

The next visit was surely going to bring some more clarity over some of her doubts, but she was unable to guess if those would be positive or negative ones.

_**Hopefully, lunch would still be as lovely as last time.** _

* * *

**~Randal’s POW~**

It was a pleasant afternoon that greeted both Randal and his mother, the coziness coming from sitting by the long sofa while they watched some reality shows’ episode.

The woman had been happy to spend some time out of the bedroom, enjoying a little more how soft the pillows of the grand furniture in the living room were compared to the ones back in her room.

There was much to see on the TV, but what was there was enough to make the quiet time spent there fairly enjoyable compared to doing nothing in this specific time.

It was still a little early to start preparing some dinner with Matt still going around with his shift as he concluded the last bits of taking the new fruits and placing them in the proper baskets by the barn.

The very place had been in disarray until three days ago, when the human had returned from his early walk to town with some tools needed to repair the little building that he had bought with his own money.

This last detail had been the main cause for Diana to get annoyed at the young man, saying that he could have asked for some help to buy the instruments only for the woman to be told that it was a ‘gift’.

The little comment warranted a huff and two hours of relative silence from the Cow Prime as she had tried to keep herself quiet around Matt… only for her attempts to be foiled by the dinnertime, when a slightly tired human mused over the remaining issues within the reparation’s efforts left to deal the following day.

The woman had butted in with some advice over the matter, stopping herself just a little too late to notice the little smile plastered on their faces.

Yes, the Collie had been enjoying a certain degree of partnership with Matt as the two ended up cooperating while dealing with the older Prime’s attempts at teasing.

It was all well spread-out to not overwhelm Diana, Randy having made sure that exaggerating would only bring unneeded anger out of the usual calm woman as he managed to get a promise out of the human to agree in taking some hits once in a while instead of rebuking everything thrown at him.

In the end, the resulting clashes would turn comical and quite amusing to either witness or be part of.

Diana wouldn’t fail to spare them some giggle even in ‘defeat’, the woman enjoying so much butting heads with them and the ensuing ‘conflict’.

Still, there were some curious moments like earlier that morning when Matt was ‘gifted’ a brand new phone by some mysterious contact.

Someone that he made clear to Randal that he knew their identity and that he could trust them, to which his mother had agreed by saying she knew about them too, causing the human to appear surprised and confused at this sudden proclamation.

The giggles that followed that half-confession did little to assuage that kind of confusion, but nothing else was said about the suspicious knowledge displayed.

The day continued uneventful and the Collie was finally enjoying some time to rest from the little economic work he had to do about the bills, the bank’s notices and the other fees about the farm.

The money arriving from the growing work by Matt was giving them some room to breathe, but it would take so long to get everything settled down without having to face some judicial issues.

Two of the debts pending upon the land had been paid off, easing a little the interests pushed by the bank’s officials and giving them more ways to pull a good recovery from the ruins of the current state of things.

Good news that had formed with the soon-to-be closure of the second week since the young man had joined Las Lindas, this development being more than enough to bring some hopes for the next week as profits were indeed blooming with the hard-working human.

People were elated with the return of the farm’s products and some of the former clients were now returning to try the ‘revival’ of the activity.

A major success that promised a lot if the pace was kept constant and unwavering for some more time, just enough to finally bring an end to the debts.

Ending this little parenthesis away from reality, Randal continued to silently enjoy the current episode of the gameshow being displayed by the TV as the contenders were eagerly trying to win over the various challenges proposed by the wacky man hosting this program.

It was just odd to see something this interesting but also highly-competitive to bring this much amusement, yet his mind just needed some time away from dealing with logical and simple things.

A yawn passed through his lips and his brown eyes slowly lifted up to the small clock set above the TV.

5:56

Randal blinked, his attention now taken by the hour as he confusedly tried to make sense at the current lack of something usual at this time of the day.

Another blink, this time he tried to give priority to his ears as he tried to perceive any discerning noises that could notify of Matt’s entering inside the house and…

There was nothing. The human had yet to return inside.

A frown settled on his face as he slowly adjusted himself in the couch, the sudden action causing his mother to look at his way.

The woman frowned, sporting a worried look at the strange uneasiness appearing on his face.

“Is something wrong, Ranny?” The Cow Prime asked carefully, but definitively tense.

The Collie gave a little shake of head. “Nothing to worry about, just surprised that Matt has yet to join us.”

After saying this, the younger Prime stood up from the sofa and stretched a little.

“Maybe he lost count of time while at work,” He supposed quietly. “I will go and see if he is returning already.”

The woman nodded, slowly relaxing at the explanation and her green eyes returning to the TV. 

“Then please, do make sure he returns back for dinner if he isn’t already.”

Randal returned the nod, walking out of the living room and by the long corridor that led to the entrance before walking outside the main door.

Glancing outside, he was greeted with the ample size of the farm and… no one nearby that he could see from there.

There was no sight of the human in the general proximity, nor he could see him anywhere near the fields he had been working on until a few hours ago.

Rather, his attention was taken by the dim light coming from the barn which meant that some activity was happening in there, the most probable chance being that the young man having surely lost some time trying to put the new vegetables in the new disposition.

It had been an occurring problem for Matt as he would end up turning out late to the house because of the newer system adopted requiring some more time to get everything well sorted out.

Even after a few days gone by, it was one of the main issues that hindered the young man by the end of the day.

The path to the repaired building was quiet and uneventful, only a calm breeze reaching his ears as the Prime didn’t bother to look around, his attention fully taken by the light coming from the barn.

Then… he felt someone talking and he got confused, his pace increasing but keeping quiet as to see what was going on.

His worry increasing as the voice turned clearer the more he came closer to it, slowly distinguishing it as Matt’s.

Finally, as Randy got close enough to look at what was happening inside, he heard a loud noise.

Someone slam their fist on one of the thick wood pillars keeping the structure up, the sturdy thing tanking the blow without sporting any major damage to it as the furless hand pressed right on the spot it had it.

“ _What do you mean that you can’t do that?_ ” Matt said loudly and… in Italian?

The Collie had heard just a little of the language, but it did have some similar accent to Spanish.

His extended arm connected his knuckles at the section of the wood that had been hit, visibly some little damage having actually been committed against it while his other hand was holding his new phone close to his ear.

He had thought that the human would have had to call some individuals he was friends with, maybe to make sure they knew he was doing fine and well.

Yet from the way things were escalating, it was sure that this wasn’t the case. Not at all.

The Prime’s ears twitched attentively at the buzzing whispering coming from the device, words impossible to decipher from afar and thus denying half of the ongoing conversation.

“ _No! You said that you had contacts with people capable of treating the worse cases of cancer, so why is this case more difficult?!_ ” The young man continued to yell, just a few words managing to get within Randal’s mind; the translation offered little, but the more the human spoke, the more he gained some insight over the subject of that heated discussion.

“ _So you mean to tell me there is no treatment to that? That there is no way to get someone to bring some cure or even a- no, I know that you have studied Medicine and- No, it’s not even that, just… listen,_ ” Matt continued quietly, his tone softening and growing melancholic now. 

The Prime mutely continued with his eavesdropping, his ears completely attentive of the words leaving the human’s mouth as he witnessed the situation unfold and escalate to a softer note.

“ _I didn’t mean to sound disrespectful, you know that I don’t want to yell or anything but,”_ The human paused again, this time drawing some more time before continuing. “ _But this person does need help- I know that you are giving me the best answers, but please tell me that this isn’t everything, maybe there is someone specialized that can- I… I understand._ ”

A sigh left the young man lips and he turned his stare at the ground, the call ending there as the device was promptly moved away from his face and back to one of his pockets.

Then the human started to lean on the little pillar he had previously punched and slumping against it, eyes closing as he seemed to think about what had just happened.

“Why are things so complicated...” He finally muttered in English, concluding the curious scene and urging the Prime to finally move in. “I can’t… I need to call either him or… or even her-”

Randal was cautious , slow and mindful of the turmoil visible from Matt’s tense body as he started to approach the unaware individual, thinking properly how to deal with this specific circumstance.

The young man went still as Randal reached out for his shoulder and landed his hand over him, giving it a careful squeeze.

His head turned slowly as surprise and panic visible in that precise moment, but he didn’t jump nor shy away from the contact.

“R-Randal?”

There was a smile on the Prime’s face, there was a lot of things that needed to be told from both sides.

“Do you fancy a little walk?”

Matt merely blinked at the sudden suggestion, looking still nervous and pale at the fact he had been caught during the call. “I- Well...” He closed his eyes for just a second, then opened up and nodded. “Yes.”

They both left the barn, silence reigning for sometime as they noticed the current time of the day in this part of the world.

The sun was still visible over the large hill by the end of town, the day was coming to an end so that the night could come and bring the proper time to rest for some people and to party for others.

Matt’s shoulders were tenser than before, but he was keeping up with the slow pace as he continued to walk closely beside the Prime.

“Who were you talking to?” The Collie finally asked, his tone moderated for the sake of not bringing more discomfort to the younger interlocutor. “You sounded quite nervous while talking to him.”

The human blinked and sighed. “An old friend, he owns me some favors about some stuff I helped him with back in Uni,” He explained curtly. “He is a good doctor, one of the best ones in Europe and he has some big contacts.”

“You wanted to seek some specialized doctor’s help for mom, that’s what I could catch from what you were saying to-”

“You understood me?” The young man almost tripped at the little development, Randal giving a little nervous smile about it.

“Actually I understood just a little from that, Italian sounds close to Spanish with some words and… I did grow up with Diana, I know a bit about Spanish,” The Collie admitted sheepishly, then he blinked and let his simple expression fade in a serious one. “Still, I think you were talking about helping mom with her sickness. What were you trying to do with this? I thought I had said-”

“I...” Matt blinked, his tension slowly melting at the quiet chat. “I was trying to find something to help. I can’t just let go of the fact that there has to be someone that could still save her and… I don’t want her to go.”

There was some silence and Randal sighed. “No doctors can treat that advanced state, there isn’t much to do about it.” Another pause, the Collie sighed. “The only thing we can do is trying our best to lessen her suffering.”

“But what if there is a chance?” The young man continued, desperation gripping from his throat and into his words. “What if there is a way to cure her and-”

“Matt.” Randal stopped walking and so did the human, the latter’s eyes widened as the Prime narrowed his brown eyes at him.

He was going a little far, his panic was starting to sound more and more erratic the more he spoke and… that was concerning.

But Randy didn’t want to see this conversation, he didn’t need to deal with this kind of false hopes once again, realism having long reached and settled in his mind over the situation.

It wasn’t nice, but there was little to do about it except giving his mother the proper care she deserved in her last days.

And while the Prime was only trying to find some peace in that very moment, the human looked as much nervous as he could get over the matter.

Matt had already seen  Randal react getting angr ily before and the expression now present on his face looking fairly similar to that one of fury and distrust  that had appeared back a week or so ago .

A myriad of thoughts seemed to wash over him as his face paled once again,  mortified over the subject itself and the gloom surrounding it.

Tension was palpable in the air and  he would be lying in saying that his expectations were disappointed when ,  instead of walking away from him and before he could say anything else, the Collie took a step towards him.

His expression was undecipherable, difficult to understand and giving Matt even more reasons to be concerned by this development.

Then another  step was made ,  then once more, but before the human could have reacted  to this approaching , his mind failed to truly register  what was going on as a pair of arms wrapped around him and pulled him into an unexpected hug.

There was silence at first,  a tense and confused one as the young man’s face was now being pressed on Randal’s shirt and Matt’s eyes were still wide open  at the shocking situation.

It was in that moment that the human’s  ears caught the distinct heartbeat through  the Prime’s chest.

It was calm, it was relaxed and… there was no anger.

What was going on?

“You are possibly the greatest moron I’ve encountered so far,” He replied quickly, a huff leaving his lips as he glanced down. “And that is something that took me so long to confirm.”

I frowned, my own eyes looking up at him, confusion triplicating at that comment.

“ _What?_ ”

He sighed. “You are always trying to help around without wanting to get anything back, you don’t want anything back and… that is why I think you deserve some genuine words from someone that is concerned about your selfish attitude.”

…

“What?!” Matt asked even stronger, getting a snort from the Prime. 

“You are always trying to help everyone, you always try to avoid people’s help and… that is unhealthy.”

The young man tensed up again. “I don’t-”

“You are hurting yourself by trying to lift this burden on your own, even though you are connected to it so lightly.” 

There was a sigh, the Collie’s hold tightened carefully to not hurt the younger man. 

“You care for Diana and mom cares for you too but you can’t just try to work alone about it, I don’t want you to work alone about it.”

“B-But I-” The human tried to jump in, only to be interrupted once again.

“Matt, what I’m trying to tell you is that you aren’t alone anymore and you shouldn’t be trying to ignore everyone’s concern about your own happiness and state of mind,” Randal continued, ignoring the feeble protesting. “I can see that you are trying to keep yourself away from others, how you are trying to help mom for… being kind to you and- and I’m glad for that, I really am, but you should also watch over yourself, you are important.”

Matt’s mouth opened, something ready to breach within this discussion but then Randal concluded his own speech.

“ _ **You matter,**_ ” The Prime hummed quietly. “You matter to mom, you matter to me, you matter to those friends in town and I bet even Alej thinks you matter as a person.”

The human tensed up again but instead of keeping his guards up, he slowly melted in the embrace, finally giving up with keeping everything bottled up.

“I’m sorry,” He half-whispered. “I’m just… I’m just trying to-”

“Help, I know and I appreciate. Mom appreciates this too, but we both care that you don’t forget about yourself,” Randal pressed on, determination filling his voice. “We both care for you. Those friends that you encountered here in town? I can say for certain they all care too and would be concerned to see you going through this unfair path.”

“ _I’m sorry_ ” The human’s own arms were soon lifted and wrapped around the Prime, but the young man didn’t concede any tears to that meaningful sentence, rather preferring to enjoy the silence in that simple instance within time. “ _ **I’m sorry.**_ ”

It’s been a while since there has been something like this in Randal’s life. 

It’s been so long since he had to confront someone like this and it was bringing back some curious memories from his past here in the farm.

Then, Matt looked up with a tiny smile. 

“Randy.”

The Prime blinked and nodded, slightly surprised at his voice  but deciding to not press him about it.

“Yes?”

The young man’s smile widened. “Did you forget to shower today?”

…

Randal blinked, his eyes narrowing at the cheeky expression on his face and… huffing  at the unexpected playful remark, taking some offense at the fact the ‘moment’ had been broken without any notice nor warning .

“Really Matt?”

The human chuckled, trying to get out of  his hold but failing as the Prime was much more stronger than he was.

Soon his expression fell back to confusion as a mirthful smile appeared on the  older man’s face and…  Matt was promptly pulled back closer in the embrace, his face pressing even more on the  shirt .

“ _Nooooo_.” The human exclaimed with an over-dramatic voice, getting some chuckles going for Randal as he enjoyed the hug a little more before letting out the still smiling human.

“That was unfair,” Matt said, drawing a long sigh as he dusted himself. “Like really, you need that shower badly.”

“It’s kind of late for that-” The prime stopped as the young man pressed his index on his nose. 

“You shall get a bath or I will personally clean you up,” The human continued, ignoring the protest.

But then Collie blinked and frowned at the ultimatum. “M-Matt, I know it’s sounds weird but what you just said did sound quite weir-”

“Considering how you are behaving and how emotional you made me?” Matt interceded once again. “I think I will ignore the innuendos because it’s for the greater good.”

Randal gulped nervously. “Don’t I get a choice?” He asked cautiously, getting a smile a response.

“Nope~!”

Soon, the two would return back to the house, with Diana witnessing a sudden mirthful clash between the two that would see her son being sent to the bathroom for some ‘much-needed showering’. 

She asked if everything was alright, trying and failing to hide the twitchy smile forming as the young man decided to bless her with the aftermath of the talk rather than with the whole discussion.

The woman was confused, quite so, but the comedic gold for her to see unfold was enough to buy her silence.

Instead of asking for more, the Cow Prime merely giggled as something did truly happen outside, something a little more than his so- Matt was trying to tell her about.

_**Randal did find a brother that day and… that very thought would last to him for a long, long time.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "I think there are errors here too, you should start much earlier than that."
> 
> Tomorrow I will have a look and fix, maybe even add, some more stuff. I'm just tired right now.
> 
> "And you better be getting a long nap after uploading this, mister. I don't want anyone to see you overworking."
> 
> Mh.
> 
> "And don't 'Mh' like this, you know very well that... wait, what are you looking at."
> 
> Uh? Oh, you mean this photo? Nothing, it's nothing-
> 
> "It's 'something' if it gets you chuckling like this. What is it? Some blackmail material about someone of the cast?"
> 
> ...Maybe.
> 
> "Oh? Now you got me interested. Tell me, who is it? Taffy, Randal, maybe Diana?"
> 
> No...
> 
> "Show me already! I demand thee! There!"
> 
> N-No, wait-
> 
> "Finally! Now, let's see who is the lucky lad or- lady. Oh my... you did find this, didn't you? Hehe~"
> 
> I mean, it's not like it was hidden or something-
> 
> "But it's quite unique in its nature, not many have seen it and... what do you think about this?"
> 
> The fact you were adorable as a child? Or the fact you grew up in China?
> 
> "Both- Wait, did you just call me cute?"
> 
> You were cute, now you are gorg- I mean, let us return to the plot-
> 
> "Listen here, mister, I want to know EVERYTHING now~!"
> 
> L-Later!


	14. (Re)Meeting

**~Matt’s POV~**

I was pretty much clueless about how I was supposed to spend my time in town as I left the farm.

The market was close for today, something about some quick rebuild of a section of the road that had started to show some signs of serious damage.

The mayor himself had dismissed the usual activity meant to happen there for the entirety of the day as the time required to fix such a problem would take too long to actually just delay the functions happening in that square.

Nothing truly worrying actually, but the first citizen was quick to spread the full extent of the situation with moderate and calm words, the inhabitants understanding the importance of such reparation without the spark of some collective panic.

And while I was glad that the man was genuinely concerned by this issue, this unexpected predicament sure was going to create some problems for my little pace with my work.

I was going to recover from this little pause if I worked a little harder than usual as to bring even more products at the following market’s session, but I wonder if that would be excessive or not.

The pace was still draining on my body and mind, something I did agree when Diana and Randal pointed this out, but it was something I’ve been long accustomed too even in other kind of jobs.

Tiring hard labor that required long amounts of time and provided little assurance of success? I’ve done pretty much everything that required physical strength with some lengthy shifts.

It wasn’t the worst situation I’ve ever dealt with, but it did certainly highlight some concerns over the chances of bringing a good turn by the end of the third week.

With the current sum we started to acquire ever since I began working at Las Lindas, we have already start to pay a minor fraction of the debts looming over the lands and that was something Randy had decided to go and do just the day before while I kept an eye to Diana as he was away.

The bank accepted a restructuring of the total interest as a portion of the collective debts was dismissed with the new coin, said interest offering some more opportunity for the complete clearing of the economic issues if things continued like this.

I was in a good mood. Actually, it was excellent considering how positively things were going for us all.

The talk I had with the Collie  _ did _ leave something meaningful behind and I felt even lighter than usual as I went for my usual walk to town.

My mind almost devoid of the past days’ worries as I ended up encountering someone by the entrance.

Miles looked a little happier than before, it was evident from his standing and expression.

Gone was the usual gloom that used to be part of this overall posture, the shoulders slouching and his face seeming like he had been sleep-deprived for some time, instead the Cat Prime looked finer than his previous drunk state.

And by fine I was referring to the fact ‘he still looked tired, but he doesn’t seem stuck in some perennial state of drunk from inner struggles or issues’, which was quite the improvement as he had indeed began avoiding alcohol by the pub during early morning.

It had been a surprise that I had been told by Minos, the taller Prime having saved on his own phone my new phone number and he didn’t spare himself from describing what had happened the day before just a few hours after dinner.

Miles had gone to the bar, greeted the patrons around and then took a seat by one of the stools near to where the Bull. The young man was then approached by the bartender and he was quick to give his order in a clear tone of voice.

“A glass of water.”

A simple request that was followed through when the owner passed to the counter the glass filled with the transparent beverage, the Cat quickly giving a sip or two before beginning some discussion with Minos about simple topics..

From that little tale, I could only guess that whatever had followed the discussion we had two days ago ended up bringing some positive change to his current life’s outlook.

But it was just that, a possibility that lacked much foundation at least until I finally had the chance to see this unexpected development with my own eyes and…

He looked much better than before, there was no denying of that.

The young Prime was the one that started ensuing conversation by greeting me, to which I replied with a nod as we started to made our way through the settlement.

People were already filling the streets, more than usual as the major square where the market was sited was closed from the public, and I was quick to notice that we were making the usual walk to the bar.

I blinked and glanced at the Cat Prime, curious over this very predicament.

Miles looked immersed in the discussion, something about the different kind of coffees offered by the menu of the local saloon-bar and the kind he had wanted to try the next time he visited the place.

“So… where are we going?” I interjected in the midst of the subject, catching the young man off-guard. “This certainly isn’t the usual path to the bar.”

He hummed at this, instantly taking a more nervous expression as we continued to wander seemingly aimlessly across town.

Looking around as if to try and find some distractions of sort to divert the attention away from that curious situation.

Sadly for him, there was nothing that could have worked and in the end he merely sighed before explaining.

“Minos invited Taffy to his house and… the girl got all flustered when this was mentioned yesterday at the bar,” The Cat Prime huffed with a suspicious tone. “I think there is something going on with those two and… I wanted to understand what.”

“Any particular reason for snooping around about this?” I decided to inquire, drawing a confused look from him.

“I mean, aren’t you and Taffy-”

“We are not in a romantic relationship,” I quickly interrupted, kind of prepared nowadays to remind people of this specific detail. “We just had a particular experience that many friends usually don’t have.”

He blinked at that. 

“You mean that you are still friends after ‘that’?” There was some surprise within his tone, but I merely nodded at him.

Then he sighed. “I guess you don’t mind if there is something going on with them, right?”

The sudden inquiry caused me to half-stop, surprised by the unexpected query as I decided to probe for more info about the matter.

“I would be elated if such thing was possible,” I admitted quietly, hiding a little bit of annoyance at that eventuality as I couldn’t just see Taffy and Minos together. Maybe it was… jealousy? No, it was… something different. 

“But I don’t think they are doing anything that should warrant some investigation, or at least not one this serious.”

“What do you mean?” Miles asked.

“I’m referring to the fact that Minos and Taffy barely showed any sort of interactions that would make it seem like they are trying something that important,” I explained carefully and thoughtfully.

“And if something did happen while I wasn’t around, I would have noticed something different in the last few days.”

The Prime sighed. “I guess then that you don’t want to check on them, so we should take this corner to go to the pub-”

“But I guess we can give it a look,” I jumped in before he could finish. “Now I’m curious about what could have gotten Taffy flustered in spending some time with Minos.”

Yellow eyes widened at that. 

“You sure about that? What if it’s something actually ‘that awkward’?” The Cat inquired, gaining a blink from that.

“I’ve already said that I wouldn’t mind if it was, Miles,” I repeated calmly. “I also think it will not be any of that. I can even bet on that.”

I concluded by pulling out fifty cents off from my pocket. 

“Fifty to you if you are right,” I offered with a neutral tone. “Fifty to me if you are wrong.”

His jaws dropped at that, but then Miles gave a slow nod to agree to such offer.

“I sure hope you are right then,” He commented with a soft tone, then he cracked a smile. “Still, I bet it will be fun to see your face without that little coin.”

I scowled at him, but I could help but smile at the cheek coming from the young man.

Ah, it’s been a while since I had to have such a sarcastic fight with someone and Miles sure knew when to poke around to draw some fun teasing from people.

Sadly, I wasn’t certainly someone that backed away from such predicament, actually loving some fierce ‘head-butting’ during conversations.

So we ended up giving each other some relentless remarks about our respective lives, turning the walk even more livelier than I thought it possible to have.

It took us some time to reach the outskirts of the town, Miles’ memory of where the place was sited quite impressive considering how the first and last time he was there it was while he was facing some drunk walk to it.

Still, we were slow in reaching the porch as the Cat decided to take a slower pace as we started to approach the place, something that certainly didn’t went missing to me but I decided to keep quiet until we were there.

I was the one to ring the doorbell and we both waited for someone to come to open the door.

It was a brief wait, one that culminated with a certain Bull coming to open to his own door.

Minos looked surprised to see the two of us here, but my attention was quickly taken by the fact that 1) he was still wearing some clothes, a half-sleeved light-blue shirt and a pair of baggy black pants, and 2) there was a small towel over his right shoulder.

Why this simple piece of pristine white cloth was that important to gain my sudden interest? Well, considering that it was stained with paint colors all over it, I can say that it was difficult to just ignore this unexpected detail on the owner of the house.

“Matt, Miles?” The tall dude finally replied in visible surprise. “I-I didn’t expect you two to visit-”

“It’s a surprise visit,” Miles pointed out with a careful voice, still smiling and nodding at the fellow Prime. “But yes, I guess that we came here uninvited and all of that.”

“Just coming around to see you, Minos,” I decided to speak up. “Miles here told me that Taffy came for some activity and we just wanted to check if-”

“So you came here for… Taffy.” 

The sudden interruption was met with a blink of an eye as I found Minos leaning by the doorstep, giving me a strange look as I tried to make sense of what I’ve just heard from him.

“I mean, Miles told me that you two were doing some private stuff and I just wanted to see what’s going on.” I tried to explain, the strange look didn’t waver not even once.

“Well, Taffy is here, but we weren’t doing anything private,” The Bull replied with a calm tone. “It was more that she was embarrassed to bring this up to anyone. It isn’t anything truly worth your worries.”

...What was he talking about?

“I wasn’t worried about anything,” I huffed tiredly, trying my best to hide my annoyance. “The market is closed and I wanted to see what was going on, nothing else.”

Even though I was certain to have driven my point across as there was an understanding glint on the Bull’s red eyes… his smile widened and he nodded.

“Maybe you should show us inside, Minos,” Miles said with a teasing tone. “Wouldn’t want Matt to get even more worried-”

“You owe me fifty cents,” I said sternly at the smug Cat and then I looked at the other Prime. “And you better expect some payback in the future, mister.”

They foolishly ignored my demands, if only they knew whom they were stepping upon with their cheek and irking amusement.

Them fools!

Still, we were invited inside as Minos led us to the living room where… a curious scene was developing.

Looking tensely by the sole entrance to that room, Taffy was sitting by a wooden stool close to a standard painting canvas… while holding a color palette with her left hand and a brush with her right one.

I noticed the ongoing project, my eyes fixing briefly at the half-done painting about the small bowl sitting on the table a few meters away from the canvas.

There were two bananas and a single apple, which were styled onto the white surface of the special paper.

Her face reddened as our presence became clear to her and she tensed up even more as I tried to awkwardly wave at her.

“I-I can explain!” The bunny suddenly exclaimed, almost tripping on the stool while saying so.

“T-There is no need to-” I tried to assure, but the girl was far from over.

“I always wanted to try and paint-”

“I understand and-”

“He told me that he was quite experienced about it so I asked him for help-”

“Taffy, you don’t need to-”

“A-And I wanted to do something about it for a gift-”

...What?

“Taffy, I understand what you are trying to tell us,” I finally pushed some more on my voice to avoid any further interruptions. “You don’t need to overreact this much about it.”

“B-But I-”

“Look, we are not overthinking over this matter. You want to learn how to pain, nothing wrong with that,” I continued, ignoring her little stuttering as I approached her and looked at the canvas from a closer perspective and…

“This is you first work, right?” I suddenly asked, my tone now showing some slight surprise coming from my immediate reaction. “Like, you didn’t do any previous attempts at this?”

“Last time was back in elementary school,” The young woman admitted with a sheepish voice, her green eyes displaying some curiosity. “Why do you ask?”

“It’s brilliant,” I bluntly commented, rightfully so as I started to point out some impressive details I could spot from some look. “The shades, the light and the little reflection spot here on the apple… this is beyond mere beginner level.”

She was stunned by the sudden praise, mouth open a little in shock, and just as she prepared to deny such ‘kind words’, Miles joined in with his own compliments.

“This looks like how some of the Art students back at Prism Uni would do. Even more if you consider that this is your first day giving it a serious try.” 

With those new praises, Taffy’s face reddened again, her hands letting go of the palette and brush by the canvas to reach up and cover the blush now spreading all over her head.

“See? I told you that you were doing well, Taffy.” Minos mused out-loud, giving the final blow for the girl to ultimately understand that her first attempt was going well to the three guys’ eyes.

“Y-You aren’t just telling me to make me feel happy, right?”

I swear, she looked so much awed at this much positiveness and… I went for a hug.

The young woman looked surprised, but didn’t tense much at the sudden contact.

Actually, she slowly leaned on and sighed. “So it’s really good, I suppose.”

Taffy sighed and nodded, the Bunny Prime nuzzling a little in the embrace before actually stopping to look up with a curious expression plastered on her face.

“By the way, why are you two... here?”

Panic surged as I remembered the teasing happening back then and, unwilling to let this escalate right now, I tried my best to answer…

Only to be interrupted by Minos. 

“Matt came to visit because Miles told him you were here, Taffy,” The traitorous Bull replied with a faux-neutral tone.

Jerk!

“Yeah, he seemed quite interested once he heard you were supposed to do something here with Minos, I might have made him worried and all but it was his intention to come here ultimately.”

Double jerks!

I am beset by dumb traitors!

My face gained a few shades of red, to not confound as a guilty response to such a shameless and baseless accusation.

Yet it was Taffy that got me to stop in my irritated mood as she let out a quick giggle.

“I see,” A pretty smile perked on her face as she hummed and looked at me with an even more curious look. “Is that true?”

I blinked at that question and I replied with well-pondered words.

“The market is closed today and I didn’t have anything planned to spend time before lunch,” I glanced at a certain Cat Prime, trying my best and failing to not glare at him for his teasing attempt. “Miles told me that he eavesdropped you and Minos talking about something embarrassing to do today _and_ he said that it had to be something perverted.”

The bunny’s stare widened in shock before she redirected it quickly at the white-haired dummy, the Cat looking uneasy under the combined glare.

“I-It was just a ‘wild guess’, you know?” He let out a nervous chuckle, but Taffy merely smirked sweetly.

“What happened next, Matt?” 

I nodded before complying with her simple request. 

“I already knew that if there had been something that could have suggested this development, I would have seen it happening way before now of all times,” I proclaimed with a genuine and serious voice. “But I decided to visit to understand what could have gotten you so bothered.”

“And it was nothing about being here with Minos?” The female Prime asked while lifting a curious eyebrow. “Or that it was something secret?”

“I know you two well enough to say that I was already certain it wasn’t the case,” I answered quickly, then a teasing smile appeared on my face. “Why? Is someone endeared by this possibility?”

She blushed, but puffed her cheeks in a pout at such ‘vile accusation’. “No.”

My smile widened. “Well, okay.” I leaned forward and landed a peck on her cheek.

Blinking at the sudden intimate action, Taffy’s blush spread even more but the girl was now sporting a happy smile on her adorable face.

“Dummy.” She commented, but her reaction subverted any attempt to sound ‘mean’ with the word.

Just as I retreated away and softly released the girl, my attention was piqued by the lights coming from the… TV?

Miles noticed too. “Hey Minos, were you expecting for someone to call you right now?”

The Bull blinked in surprise at the development but then he froze as realization struck slowly but surely.

“Oh, I almost… forgot,” He muttered nervously, causing a complete confused reaction.

“Everything’s alright?” I asked, getting a quick glance from him before he gave a swift nod.

“Yes, it’s just… the friends I’ve mentioned you,” The tall Prime alluded quietly. “The ones you had me call after so long-”

“Because you didn’t want to meddle with their lives?” At his nod, I continued. “Good, then why don’t you introduce us to them?”

…

“I don’t think it would be a good idea,” The Bull mentioned carefully to which I frowned in utter confusion.

“Why? Is there something wrong about it?” I pressed on as I tried to make sense of the sudden refusal. “Maybe they don’t want to meet us-”

“Oh no, they would want to meet you all,” Minos admitted with a sigh. “Especially you, Matt, but I don’t think-”

“Why not? I still have some time and I don’t see any real issue with that?” I concluded with a nod.

The red-eyed Prime blinked at the question, spending a few moments of silence before he… sighed.

“Fine,” He said with a defeated tone.

Soon we were all taking seats by the long sofa in front of the screen as Minos slowly reached for the device’s controls and accepted the call.

I blinked and… I found myself staring at three individuals, two familiar faces and a young one that I was unaware who she was.

* * *

**~Minos’ POV~**

Taking a seat by the free space left on the sofa, the Bull Prime turned to quickly look at the now-active monitor.

Specifically to the Crest of Love as the woman seemed to be missing her usual bubbly greetings, her attention fixed away from everyone but the only human in that room.

Her pink eyes were surprisingly narrowed in a curious and intrigued light, quite odd to see the Prime appear this much… distracted by the something or someone, surprise growing within Minos at such development.

It was the first time in years that he had seen the Gazelle react this much gloomy, her expression betraying something of a recognition over the features on Matt’s face.

This very sight was also spotted by her husband.

Kayin merely gave him a nod as a greeting before he slowly followed to where the friend’s stare ended and back to his wife, he too noticing the individual that had gotten Grace this much quiet and distracted.

Matt looked confused by the attention he was receiving, but he didn’t seem to shy away from the intense staring, actually he started to look back at the woman with a confused yet intrigued expression.

It was Joy that brought an end to this strange predicament, the girl smiling brightly at her uncle, blissfully unaware of the anomalous development, that actually decided to give a proper greeting as the call truly began. 

“Hiyah, Uncle Minos!”

The chirpy tone seemed to be enough to bring almost everyone out of this trance, even the human was quick to break the staring contest and only this action ended up getting Grace to realize what had just happened.

Giving a simple smile with a sheepish look plastered on her face. 

“O-oh, hello Minos.”

‘What is going on with her?’

Her husband continued to frown about this curious behavior but nodded again. 

“Minos, it’s good to see you.”

“Grace, Kayin and… little Joy, hello!” The Bull answered with a big smile, amused by the annoyed reaction from his surrogate niece.

“I’m not little!” She huffed, a pout emerging on her face… before it quickly deflated as the girl noticed the rest of the people sitting by the couch. “And who are they?”

“Joy,” Kayin chided the teen about her bluntness.

Before the youngest child of the couple could have the chance to apologize over the matter, Matt decided to jump in.

“I guess she was just surprised by seeing quite the few unfamiliar faces,” The human commented with a tiny smile. “Still, I guess we should introduce ourselves.”

“My name is Matt, Matt Newcastle.” The young man started with a quiet tone.

“I’m Taffy,” The bunny prime followed quickly and then it was the turn of the Cat.

“Miles.”

Grace hummed quietly and nodded at the introductions, but it was his husband to begin as she still seemed distracted by some thoughts.

“I’m Kayin Ravenhurst,” The Coyote Prime replied with a calm tone, a small smile on his face.

The tomboyish girl smiled widely. “I’m Joy!”

The boisterous greeting made her father groan quietly at such loud display, meanwhile Minos was smiling at such comedic scene.

Yet the fun side of such development crumbled the moment there was silence from the Crest of Love.

The Gazelle Prime seemed to be lost with her thoughts completely and didn’t give any hints of reaction as everyone was now looking at her.

“Is she… alright?” Miles asked quietly.

Taffy looked uncertain herself over the conditions of the mother and wife, something feeling wrong about it all.

Matt… merely blinked quietly at her.

_ And then he spoke. _

“Your name is Grace, right?” He asked carefully. “Is everything alright?”

The second query managed to get a greater reaction, the woman’s pink eyes lifting away from a simple spot in the wall back to the human. She blinked and seemed to realize that she had been silent for too long, a little blush appearing on her face.

“Oh my,” The married woman said softly before nodding. “Forgive me, I was… thinking about something… not much important.”

Then she stared back at the human. “I wish to apologize, I didn’t mean to appear like you did something or that you caused something.”

“It’s fine,” The young man quickly replied, Minos deciding to step in before anything weirder happened.

“Those are the good people I’ve befriended in the last few weeks,” The Bull announced with a tiny smile. “They are the ones that I’ve spoken about.”

Grace seemed to finally grasp back to reality as a teasing frown appeared on her face.

“Oh? So this is the Matt Newcastle that urged you to finally call us?” The woman mused quietly as she turned to glance at the human.

Once again she tensed up a little, but the Gazelle Prime seemed to hold much better than just a few moments ago.

“It’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, Matt, and once again I wish to make it clear I’m sorry for having caused this little awkward moment,” The woman nodded while excusing herself, to which the young man sighed and nodded back.

“Ma’am, it’s alright. I know you didn’t mean anything ill about it… but can I guess it was because I looked like someone you knew.”

…What?

“Something similar, yes.” The Crest of Love replied with a hint of awe.

Matt cracked a small smile and sighed at her surprise.

“I’ve heard people back home confusing me for someone else,” He admitted sheepishly, tilting his head to the side and almost leaned on Taffy’s shoulder. “It’s kind of a normal thing for me, my appearance does remind people of someone else from my family even those distant in terms of blood-relation.”

“I think that is something usual for… Italians?” Kayin mused quietly and the human nodded, now sporting a stunned expression at that comment.

Even Minos felt like something was going on with the head of the Ravenhurst family, something that matched partly with Grace’s unexpected reaction.

“Y-Yes, my parents were both Italian and my birthplace is in Northern Italy,” The young man replied slowly, his shock dwindling the more he spoke. “I’m actually surprised that-” 

“That sounds quite a hassle,” Joy pointed out while interrupting, blinking at the young man. “I mean, people always bothering with ‘you look like him’ or ‘are you him’ kind of questions. Did you ever feel annoyed by dealing with that kind of attention?”

Matt sighed at this, nodding at this sudden perspective but feeling fairly annoyed at the interjection. 

“Sometimes, but it happened that I would ignore those people I didn’t want to have anything to do with,” He explained with a tired tone, still his smile didn’t falter.

“I can only guess that it has to be quite problematic if you don’t like to talk about it too much,” Kayin commented again, to which Matt smiled at.

“It can be, yes.”

“But maybe we should also focus on the other two individuals,” Grace finally took the initiative about conversation, possibly sensing the nervousness coming from the human. “Like the lovely young lady sitting beside Matt.”

Taffy blushed and gave a quick nod at that. “I-It’s nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Ravenhurst. Same for you too, Joy.”

The younger girl smiled at her and nodded at the polite greetings. 

“Please call me Grace,” The mother replied kindly as she turned to her husband. “And I don’t think Kayin will refuse being addressed by his name.”

The man agreed with a mere nod to this development and the Bunny Prime merely smiled back at the quiet response.

Despite the conversation seeming ready to go for a strange but calm beginning, once again Joy piped in with a curious comment.

This time, the probe was directed to the Cat Prime.

“So your name is Miles, right?” The young Ravenhurst asked with a curious tone. “Like… is your full name Miles Lionheart or did you go to Prism Uni-”

“T-That’s kind of private,” The nervous-looking Cat replied quickly and with a light stutter, enough to get me interested on the matter.

That was indeed Miles’ surname but… how was his niece aware of that?

This question was answered moments later as Joy continued.

“I think… sister mentioned you once or twice in a while some time ago,” She said with an interested tone.

Grace blinked, realization growing in her pink eyes. 

“I think I know what this is all about,” The woman said cryptically, her hands reaching for the little phone by the kitchen’s counter on the side, she soon was looking through its photo gallery and nodded once she found was she was searching for.

Kayin approached her and gave a look to the picture in question, the screen of the device hidden from the other side of the call yet Miles was already trying to squirm and hide behind an even more confused Matt.

The veteran knight had a blank expression on his face, yet Minos could see some fury flashing from the usually kind green eyes while the friend turned his attention to young Prime hiding behind the human.

“You are the brat that made my little Hope cry!” The man exclaimed as he took a prominent position in front of the monitor, causing Miles to yelp in panic and squirm even more frantically behind Matt.

Meanwhile the Bull Prime felt dots connecting inside his mind over the curious mystery that came the moment the human decided to approach the young prime.

The Cat had been avoiding mentioning much from his situation regarding Prism Uni and why he left, about the reasons that brought him here in this small fraction of Gossamer and away from other cities.

But to think that the motivation would be one close to him? Minos was unsure what to think about this as he felt conflicted from two distinct sides of the story.

While it had been clear that whatever Miles had done to create this issue, it hadn’t been something he could easily forgive himself about and that had been visible from the first few days he had been walking in town.

He somehow managed to stabilize things by following their advice back at the market, Minos could remember himself pushing the young man to actually confront the problem itself and put some effort in showing some genuine interest in not letting this die sourly.

But then again, among those suffering from the Cat’s mistakes was Hope.

While not as expressive with her caring tones with him as Joy was, her oldest surrogate niece was still someone that he considered close family and the little anger bursting at Kayin’s proclamation had rightfully appearing to defend the girl.

Emotion again logic, desire against duty. Life did always follow this pattern in many important decisions and, instead of finding resolution alone, it was someone else that tried to defuse the awkward escalation.

Matt shoved Miles back to his previous seat, huffing at him. 

“Can you please not turn me in a meatshield?” The human half-asked, getting an embarrassed but nervous look from the younger fellow.

Then the man turned to look at the screen, eyes fixed on Kayin as he sighed.

“Sir, while I understand you are rightfully furious with Miles here for causing distress to your daughter, I think there is a misunderstanding about-”

“He made her cry!” The Coyote Prime reminded loudly, staring down angrily at the shivering Cat. “How can I just forgive someone that broke up with my daughter for no apparent reason?!”

…

…

What? But- How?!

“S-Sir, you mentioned ‘breaking up’ but… there was no such thing happening,” Matt rebuked these strong words, starting to look pale himself too. “There was no relationship of the kind, for both parts-”

“Then please explain this photo if there was ‘no relationship’!” The father slammed back by turning the phone’s screen to the monitor and… we all stared at the curious frame.

It was Miles and Hope, both looked fairly happy while hugging each other. They were both staring at the cameraman with a smile, a nervous but cheerful from the young man and a bright and wide open one from his surrogate niece.

‘Happy Valentine’s!’. 

It was written on the side and… Minos frowned at this evidence, red eyes slowly turning to look at the shocked look on the Cat Prime’s face.

The Bull Prime was surprised, irritated a little by the closeness between the two students but… then his attention moved to Matt.

The human was showing some panic at such proof, yet he barely seemed to lose any of his posture over it.

Actually, he looked ready to continue some more before giving up.

“They are just hugging-” Matt tried to make that kind of argument.

“It was on Valentine’s Day,” Grace butted in with a mirthful smile. “I don’t think that was a ‘simple hug’.”

The young man groaned and looked at Miles. “Okay, how did this happen? You told me that-”

“We still are friends like we were back then,” The Cat Prime muttered awkwardly. “But our friendship is similar to… what you have with Taffy.”

The sudden comment brought numerous reactions out from that strange connection.

Grace, Kayin and Joy looked equally confused by the reference, the Coyote Prime pausing in his anger to try and understand what Miles was talking about.

Taffy and Matt tensed up at it, both looking shocked and quite embarrassed at those words.

But it was Minos’ reaction that displayed the most.

‘Oh Gods.’

Minos’ eyes widened when he slowly realized what the young Prime just used as an example, his red eyes widening as he turned to look at the two mortified individuals that were mentioned while his brain tried to consider the case forwarded by the Cat Prime.

Surprise, confusion and a renewal of the previous anger at the comparison as he knew very well what made Taffy’s and Matt’s friendship quite ‘unique’ from a normal perspective.

“And that means?” Kayin asked with an irritated tone. “Minos, what he is talking about-”

“Dear, I think I know what little Miles here is talking about,” Grace intervened before the Bull Prime could have answered to the confused man. “Do you remember that ‘fun story’, Minos mentioned some days ago? The one about Taffy and Matt?”

Her husband opened his mouth to voice more confusion, but then the full extent of the predicament hit him like a brick slamming on his head, his stare now displaying double the anger at that.

“You did _WHAT_ to my daughter?”

And while this madness continued, Joy stared at it all with moderate confusion and immense amusement, almost giggling at the comical escalation that was happening in that ‘simple call’.

“W-We were careful- and it was just a few times-”

“How about you stop digging yourself a bigger grave, Miles?” Matt asked with a soft but tired tone, he was far from recovering from that unexpected blow.

The Cat Prime blinked and gave a quick nod before going full quiet.

But while Kayin was showing some incredible fury over the matter, Grace was actually enjoying the overall madness with his daughter.

Albeit a little less prone to show how entertained she was, Minos could see her smile twitching as she seemed ready to deploy some teasing to add more fuel to the growing fire.

“Love, I think that at least we can say that he didn’t broke our daughter’s heart,” The Gazelle interceded with a calm tone, her smile cheekily turned at Miles. “But there is one question that I wish to ask you, young man.”

The Cat gulped nervously. “A-And that is?”

“While you aren’t in love with Hope, nor she sees you in that light,” The woman started with a curious voice. “Can you tell us who is the ‘lucky one’ that got our lovely daughter enraptured?”

Joy facepalmed and groaned at this, knowing that this escalation was as embarrassing as irritating to listen to. “Mooom.”

Until now it had been limited to aggressively poking fun around, but now that it was about love itself? She was having some annoyance over the matter. 

Her mother merely giggled at this reaction but nodded at Miles to answer, the young Prime tensing a little over the subject and… it was pretty clear why.

Giving out the poor fool that was Hope’s object of attraction? The sense of camaraderie between young men nowadays was strong enough to hint to some sense of collective preservation.

The ‘Bro-code’ Matt had mentioned multiple times was something that Miles was aware and dedicated too, but the human barely seemed willing to respect such ‘laws’ before the troublesome developments he had to face.

“Please tell her,” He said with a brief groan. “I don’t think I can help you anymore about defending you from Mr. Ravenhurst.”

Miles gulped again, but conceded to the peer pressure growing from this situation. “F-Fine, it’s-”

“Shin Aryoko?” Grace guessed before the Cat could comment, the sudden supposition gaining a shocked reaction from the young Prime.

“W-wha- but how?!”

The Gazelle merely giggled at the befuddled expression on his face, while both Kayin and Minos blinked at the curious name brought up.

The surname was the one hint that gave a clear sight over whom she was referring to and… they both looked surprised by this guess.

Shin was Kate’s and Bengala’s son, the oldest considering that their daughter, Hikari, was just twelve by now, and was also studying at Prism Uni right now thanks to his prodigious and natural attune with scientific-based subjects that helped him skip some grades.

The Bull Prime could remember having spent some pleasant conversation with the young man, the White Tiger Prime being quite intelligent but mindful of not sounding arrogant or even upstartish with his knowledge.

A good kid with the best traits of his parents.

Sadly, it was also known to Minos about Hope’s little crush she used to have (and seemingly still had) over the boy back when they were young children, the girl asking multiple times to visit her childhood friend.

To think that the crush might have evolved in something more? Now the Bull Prime was intrigued but also concerned about a small detail he had noticed with the few encounters he had with Shin.

The boy was… dense to romantic feelings. Friendship was easy for him to attain with a few words with his peers, but love? That was something beyond his logical sense of reasoning.

Hope was truly walking a tragic and difficult path if she really wanted to have some opportunity with the blond.

“So this friend of yours is crushing on this guy and… for how long?” Matt decided to ask quietly to Miles, the Prime sighing.

“I think it’s been years,” The Cat mentioned loosely. “Hope never gave me a proper detailed history between her and Shin, but they have known each other-”

“Since their childhood,” Grace muttered with a sigh. “A pity that my little girl never tried to be a little braver with him.”

“Hope is just silly,” Joy butted in with a sigh, “I mean, if she likes him that much, why doesn’t she just tell him that?”

Matt hummed. “That would be too brash and risky,” He replied quickly. “When you are crushing on someone, or even in love with them, you generally have to be careful and mindful of their own feelings. I guess she is cautious over the possibility that he doesn’t return the same emotions.”

“And when you try too hard and get refused, sometime you might feel hurt by it all,” The Gazelle continued with a sigh. “Even if they try to be the sweetest and most sensible individuals in the refusal, you would still feel some self-hate to deal with.”

There was a curious pause, enough to make Minos flinch at the circumstance Grace was alluding too as the memories about that period of their lives was quite… chaotic.

One individual had been important, someone that had been there back when they left the Emperor’s prisons.

A good man and hero. A human. 

The Bull blinked at the irony, it’s been another human that was now bringing him some stability to his new life.

“I mean, I think it has to be quite messed up if someone just ends up realizing about this kind of predicament and… I don’t want to sound too indiscreet but,” Matt muttered quietly. “Did you face something like that, Grace?”

The Crest of Love sighed tiredly but nodded. “Many years ago, it was quite… awkward but he tried his best to not hurt me with his words.”

“Still, I can’t help but think he had to have been a jerk to just… ignore the signals for too long.”

“He was quite dumb about love,” The woman mused with a little smile. “But he cared for me, for Kayin and the others.”

Her husband gave a slow nod and, instead of showing any displeasure at the mentioning of that past situation… he seemed mournful.

Joy blinked. “Wait, who are you talking about?”

“Someone that was a dear friend of us, kid,” Kayin replied softly as he reached to embrace his wife. “Sadly, he hasn’t been around for decades now if not more.”

Minos nodded slowly, eyes half-closed as he pondered back at that strange time of his life.

How odd it had been, how many things had happened from being the Dragon of the Emperor to one of the leading figure of the Prime rebellion.

So many events, so many good and bad moments.

A pity that now it was all over and he was no longer here.

“That sounds… like I went a little too far,” Matt said with a melancholic voice, Taffy leaning and giving him a quick hug as he sighed. “I’m sorry if I did bring up any sad memories or-”

“It’s alright,” Grace interrupted with a brighter smile. “You didn’t mean to cause any hurt and… I guess we are even now, aren’t we?”

The human blinked before giving a slow nod. “I… guess?”

A giggle left the woman’s lips. “Good and...” She looked by the side of the monitor and frowned. “Sadly, we will have to interrupt this call now. It’s about time we start preparing some lunch and-”

“Wait, what time is it?” The young man almost stood up at that sudden notice from the other side of the call.

“It’s… 12:43, why?” Kayin replied quietly, frowning at this curious reaction from the human.

Matt facepalmed. “I’ve about twenty minutes to prepare the pane in pasta(1) before starting to start my shift.”

The Gazelle blinked. “Isn’t that the base for… making pizza?” She asked and her question sparked quite the varied reactions.

Miles’ eyes lit up while Taffy seemed interest by learning this new term and… Joy looked with a famished expression. “P-Pizza? What kind?” The girl inquired, to which the human sighed.

“I bought ingredients to make three Romana with cut wurstels. Nothing too much but-”

“You know how to make pizza?” The Cat Prime interrupted with a curious but amused frown. “And you are Italian.”

The human narrowed his eyes at that. “Yes, what about it?” He retorted with a suspicious note, the younger man turning his head away as to hide a snort from him.

Yet Matt didn’t waste further time about the shenanigans happening there and stood up with Taffy, “I guess I will have to leave early. I did promise Diana that I would make her Pizza as it’s her and Randy’s favorite food.”

“And I need to prepare for today’s late shift.” The Bunny Prime nodded in agreement. 

Miles slowly followed their examples and nodded. “I still have to fix my little home,” He mentioned with a tired sigh. “Nothing too big, but I would like to finish the planned tasks before it gets too dark-”

“And you better call Hope and tell her about this little discussion,” Kayin butted in with a scowl. “I will call her later to see if you told her about this situation.”

He gulped nervously but the young man nodded and soon the call concluded with some amicable terms while the others started to leave Minos’ home.

The Bull Prime was smiling as he led the three by the entrance door and, just as he waved at them while they walked back to town, the tall man stopped when his red eyes started to play some tricks to him.

Matt’s frame started to slowly blur into a faint figure, someone else and… someone that wasn’t supposed to be here now.

Yet he was and he was walking away.

‘We shall met again, Minos, and I know in our next lives we will be best buddies. Trust me on that.’

And then Matt was gone with the others out from his eyesight, the Bull Prime standing still by the porch as his confused wide eyes continued to stare at the end of the visible path and… he blinked.

...What? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you-
> 
> "Please no, it was yesterday and-"
> 
> Happy birthday Bukharin, happy birthday to you~!
> 
> "...Ambar-"
> 
> Yes darling, do you want something as a wish~? *wink*
> 
> "*Sigh*, I'm just tired. There was a storm yesterday night that kept me awake."
> 
> And you are a dummy because you didn't catch some sleep now to end this chapter. You dummy~!
> 
> "Meh, I don't need to- Uh?"
> 
> *Slowly lifts him up* This is why, for your birthday, the High Prime shall bestow you with quite the gift.
> 
> "...Please no, I don't need anything about-"
> 
> Too late~ *Proceeds to throw him in a king-sized bed before launching herself in*
> 
> "N-No wait-"
> 
> Here we go~ *Hugs him close and snuggled his head below her chin* Now you can get some rest going.
> 
> "...What?"
> 
> Uhm? You thought I was going to do something else, weren't you?
> 
> "Kinda?"
> 
> Well, I decided that maybe your best wish would be... some long deserved rest. Don't worry I will watch over it.
> 
> "Oh... Wait, you don't sleep-"
> 
> Hm-hm~
> 
> "You... I don't know what to say."
> 
> Close your eyes and get some dreaming going, 'kay.
> 
> "...Fine."
> 
> GLOSSARY
> 
> Pane in Pasta: A mix of flour, water, baking powder and salt. It's the main component from which Pizzas are then developed.


	15. A heartfelt talk

**Chapter 15: A heartfelt talk**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

**~Matt’s POV~**

Today was going to be a slow day.

Even though Randal had asked me yesterday to stay back at the house until I had to start my shift, mentioning that he had finally managed to get an appointment by the bank just outside town, I knew things were going to be quite… dull for a while.

The event was incredibly important for the farm. I didn’t need to be reminded of how personal meetings at a bank could make for some opportunityTo build up some ‘trust’ between the representatives of the establishment and the debtor. Randy was going to be the legal guardian considering the circumstances.

I had a few small experiences over this kind of topic as I had met my own share of bankers detailing the ‘novelties’ presented by their unique offers for those that created new accounts in their banks.

And with Diana deemed ‘too ill’ to commit herself to these stressful situations without getting influenced in the process, the Collie had to take into his own hands the handling of the bureaucratic mess pending over Las Lindas.

The money that had been collected in the last two weeks which he had taken with himself for the visit was meant to give his word greater legitimacy. Maybe even going as far as getting more time by extending the expiration dates. And hopefully, by showing some ‘goodwill’ and genuine interest in having everything paid back, some easing over the debt could be attained.

Randy was an upstanding guy with an upbeat personality, very polite but also extroverted enough to get some proper deals going with some persuasion and patience.

Thus, with the young man leaving for this important task, I was left to face quite the difficult predicament back at the house. Diana was certainly someone I had no problem in having around and talking to. I found her own perspective to be pleasant, especially with her funny share of jokes thrown around once in a while. But I would be lying in saying that her sickness was something that I wasn’t comfortable to deal with.

It took me a little while to understand the non-negligible list of medicines she had to take on a daily basis, with the proper hours and quantities, which the currently-missing Collie had left for me to sort out. The real issue which I could see from the very beginning was when she started to appear fairly irritated by my early attempts in giving her the medical aid she needed.

The woman was quite careful to not sound too childish at first, appearing just ‘forgetful’ or even ‘clumsy’ when some of the pills would fall out of her hands.; then she started to get more vocal about the ‘overbearing nature of my care’, questioning if I wasn’t just overreacting with the attention I was giving to the medicines.

Ignoring the amusing irony of being called ‘overbearing’ by a woman that would more than once turn into an overbearing mother, I surprisingly managed to find plenty of patience while dealing with these instances of resistance.

Maybe it was because I had expected this kind of attitude from her after having spent so much time at the farm. It was more than enough to have seen plenty of sights about the stubbornness the Cow Prime had back in her early days. It was just a sliver from her past self, yet I couldn’t help but feel glad that she was still fiery with her manners when she wanted.

Or maybe this inner peace was brought by the fact that my own irritation was easily overwhelmed by my sense of interest over her well-being. But as far as I was concerned over the matter, the topic itself was secondary, if not tertiary, considering the importance of having her take those medicals for her sake.

Some of the medicines were meant to regulate her constant state of pain without causing her to develop any addiction, while the rest was meant to keep her body’s metabolism running at a smooth pace and without any issues.

Diana looked fairly strong despite the mighty effects of her illness, however she was quick to tire and lacked the energy required to wander around the house without someone keeping an eye on her.

I offered her some support by having her cling on me so that she could push part of her weight elsewhere as I helped her wander around her home.

This predicament turned out to be quite entertaining in the few hours spent together, with the woman cleverly storming me over with flattering compliments and remarks filled with innuendos. I would then reply with faux surprise while also complimenting her back with some amusing adjectives over her not-so-negligible beauty.

Each of those walks ended up with the two of us red-faced after some hard laughs over these attempts, keeping the conversation from falling into anything too serious or saddening.

The morning almost passed quickly as nothing strenuous happened during my early watch over the Cow Prime. Yet, the very moment that lunch was done and gone by, was when I started pondering over the recent circumstances.

It was about two hours before Randal was expected to return back home, both Diana and I were sitting by the couch while watching an old movie that we neither liked nor disliked. It was a dull and lazy moment on a dull and lazy day.

A drama. Something that offered little issues over our own thoughts as the woman slowly but surely seemed to start leaning back on the pillow she had beside her. Her green eyes sported some tiredness and a need of sleep, but she was far from going for a nap.

Within this little moment of individual calm and quiet, I decided to zone out from the movie and right onto an important topic I had been giving only small specks of my free time because of my arduous job.

The problem itself wasn’t that recent. I could trace the first hint of something being off about the circumstances surrounding the helpful people trying to find an ‘answer to my current whereabouts’ back when I first saw Lady Ambar, Naerie… and Geecku.

It was the lizard-like Prime that got me thinking the most. Not because of a major sense of familiarity, but because of the minor headache born from merely looking at her bright yellow eyes.

I couldn’t find a solution as to what sparked this strange malaise. My mind provided no recollection of having met someone with her characteristics, and yet I felt I did. It was a sense of dejavu denied by my own mind, as I couldn’t really connect her to… anything I knew about myself.

Not only Geecku, but looking at Ambar also left me unnerved for some unknown reason, and I couldn’t help but feel like these two actually knew about me beforehand.

It was a strange gut-feeling, something that even the lack of evidence for such a ridiculous thought seemed to not dismiss. I just felt too sure about this very possibility.

When I had returned back to the farm after that discussion, I finally took notice of the fact that I felt drained by that curious discussion. My initial reaction to this was that I had been tiring myself out by helping around Miles while also dealing with that troublesome chat I had shared with Naerie and her mother.

The youngest of the two Bear Prime didn’t seem to recognize me, nor did I feel that I knew her beyond our current situation.

Ignoring this first case of migraine, I had expected things to have just settled down, that the cause of partial drain I had experienced was something born from a physical problem rather than one connected to my confused state of mind. That was my first diagnosis. Something that best-logically fitted over the odd conversation, but then I was introduced by Minos to his friends.

Joy, Kayin and… Grace.

The couple’s child was someone I hadn’t met before, thus interacting with her proved to give me few issues compared to the confusing emotion I felt burning within my chest when I noticed her mother’s stare fixed on me.

I tried playing it off with some remarks and polite comments, expecting that she just had been surprised that I was a human among Primes, or maybe it was my unexpected presence for that call.

I certainly couldn’t have thought more about that pink-eyed stare in that very moment, having nothing meaningful to say while the ‘encounter’ with the happy family continued with the most quiet of manners.

Especially with the little debacle created by Miles’ former relationship with the oldest child of the couple, which definitely got me interested in not having the Cat lynched by the visibly enraged Kayin in a fit of ‘fatherly fury’.

But, the more I started to look at this initial contact from a quieter perspective, the more I could pick up some clues over the strange ‘nostalgia’ born from the staring contest that would then ensue from that.

Kayin proved to be clueless over the situation. His confused reaction over his wife’s quiet watch gave me more evidence that… this was more complicated that I could already elaborate on.

I could already feel that there had been more than just ‘a night gone weird at the bar’. And every single headache gave me a strong confirmation that there was something brewing truly beyond my current capacity of thinking. Something bigger than I could currently imagine with the clues I had and… that worried me.

It felt like a massive puzzle with an unpleasant end to it, no rewards to receive from the efforts of unraveling such a mystery except some somber element I was currently missing.

I was surprised when Grace mentioned that the reason behind her intense looks was related to someone that ‘wasn’t there anymore’, which would eclipse any possible connections prior to my arrival in Gossamer, yet I was more curious about the story behind such a person.

The Gazelle Prime had been referring to a human, someone that ‘looked like me’ and that caused this unexpected escalation from the woman. But what was I missing from this response?

I felt like there was something deeper, a hidden meaning that I was, for some reason, ignoring ‘willingly’ and ‘purposely’. I couldn’t just press myself to think more about it without my brain locking itself from continuing and giving me some fresh headaches the moment I even gazed at this query within my thoughts. I was stuck in a dead end that I could technically break away from but… why couldn’t I just-!?

A finger poked at my shoulder, shaking me from my silent thinking as I slowly returned my attention to reality.

“Seems like something has made you quite angry, young man?” Diana’s voice pierced through my thought bubble, bringing me back to the present.

Blinking, my eyes took notice at the movie’s credits rolling by the screen in front of me, before glancing to the side to spot a worried glint coming from the Prime’s green orbs.

A sigh left my lips. “Just thinking about some stuff I’ve discovered recently.”

“Anything you wish to talk about?” She asked with a careful tone, her concern finally entering her words. “If it isn’t anything too personal, you could ask for-”

“It’s not something clear to me and… I don’t even know if it’s personal or not,” I interjected with a quiet hum building inside my throat. “There’s… just something I feel is important that I’m unable to remember clearly.”

“How important?” The woman inquired calmly. “Is it about your arrival here at the farm?”

I blinked at this. “Perhaps,” I admitted with some hesitation. “I’m not sure if it’s connected, but I feel so certain that it could.”

“Sounds confusing. Is there a reason why you’re having trouble remembering? You can’t remember anything?”

“I feel a strange sense of nostalgia about… some of the people I’ve recently met,” I replied hesitantly, still unsure if it was worth it or not giving up so much information about my little dilemma. “There’s this sense of certainty within me that makes it feel like I’ve met them before, somewhere. Somehow.”

“Yet your mind refuses to give you anything that could help you?” Diana guessed calmly, sighing tiredly as I nodded slowly at her. “I guess your amnesia is actually connected to them but… the reason behind your lack of recollection might not be something pleasant.”

I took a brief pause to contemplate these words, then I frowned. “You mean that the amnesia was… born from something painful?”

“It’s a possibility,” She answered with a shrug. “But if that’s the case, maybe it’s best to not force yourself through the block. Maybe there is a good reason why you don’t want to remember.”

I wanted to refuse this perception, that I was the one that didn’t want to know about the truth. But I couldn’t.

For some weird reason, I felt at ease leaving this mystery afloat a little more, to let it unfold with a slower pace rather than forcing its truth unveiling suddenly and quickly.

“You are tense,” The Prime commented with a stronger voice, her hand patting at her leg. “Come here.”

...What?

“I’m not-”

“Come. Here.”

Her voice turned stern only for that moment, yet her smile was still there to prove she wasn’t angry about the hesitation. I blinked, quite skeptical over following such a simple but embarrassing compliance… but I still went ahead and placed my head by her lap, my sight directed at the TV.

I tensed up right as I felt her hands calmly reach for my hair. Her ministrations were slow-paced but incredibly comforting by the mindful way she was caressing through the little mane of sandy-blond I had.

“I guess you’ve missed your haircut day just like Randy did in the last few years,” The woman mused mirthfully before sighing and starting to hum.

“It’s… isn’t this awkward?”

She blinked. “You mean for me to coddle a young man like you? I think I’ve done this plenty of times with my own son. Why shouldn’t I do this with you?”

I frowned and glanced up, doing my best to overlook her noticeable chest. “Because I’m your employ-”

“An employee that sleeps here in my home, helps around with the chores, and thinks of my son as his brother in all but blood?”

The long question, which sparked a teasing smile on her face, managed to get a blush out of me.

Seriously, was that last detail so easy to spot on? Wasn’t that awkward to look from an outside perception of the relationship?

“It’s complicated,” I tried to plead, but sadly her smile merely widened at such a statement.

“Life is always complicated, Matt,” The woman replied with a sigh. “But I guess being cared for like this can be quite… embarrassing.”

I blinked quietly. “A little.”

Diana giggled before settling with playing some more with my hair.

It was peaceful and… somewhat relaxing as she continued with her caressing. Her skilled fingers were careful enough to not pull any of the locks she was touching around.

Then, her expression turned somber for a moment, her stare directed at nothing in particular as she seemed distracted by some thoughts.

“When he came to the farm to work in your stead, Minos told me that you were aware of my full conditions,” The woman finally spoke, my body going tense once again while her hands continued to calm me down with the mindful pace they had in their actions. “I’m not mad.”

“I should have asked-”

“And accepted a ‘no’ as an answer?” She interrupted quietly, then she sighed. “I can understand the interest behind your curiosity after seeing me in pain.”

I kept silent, staring up at her mostly-neutral expression, just some hints of sadness and displeasure appearing here and there once in a while.

“I never told my children why my husband left me,” The Cow Prime began her words with a slow pace. “Mora and Randal probably think that he left me willingly, that there isn’t a good reason for-”

“I-I shouldn’t be the one to-”

“Consider it a favor you are doing for me, that I just need to let out and vent a little with someone I can feel to trust enough with this matter,” She replied back with a nod. “After giving out so much about your own grief, please do hear me giving out something I wish to no longer keep inside about this.”

I blinked at her request, giving some heavy pondering over her pleading tone and… I nodded.

A small thankful smile appeared on her face in response to my acceptance.

“I met him… it was two to three years before giving birth to Mora, about thirty years ago,” Diana started to narrate. “He was a very blunt person. I had never met a Narakhan before and… he just looked like a good guy. A little bit sharp on the edge, but a respectful note making him stand up to others.”

The woman mirthfully smiled at this detail.

“When I first started to work here, I… I had some trouble starting my own activity.” The Cow Prime explained. “My own mother had made plenty of enemies during the time she had her own farm, and not many wanted to deal with anyone bearing the name ‘Linda’.”

Her stare moved to the ceiling, and she paused for a couple of seconds.

“I tried everywhere in Gossamer. From the bar you usually go by, to the least-known Gossamer Spirits,” Diana continued with a distracted tone. “I was so desperate that I had plans to try and secure some deals with the nearby regions. I was quite stubborn, but also economically limited.”

There was a pause, then her lips pressed together in thought before she sighed.

“The first time I met him, it was when he was dealing with a brawl. He had been singled out by two goons because of his nature.” She huffed at this very nature. “And he reacted fairly aggressively when, as I tried to stand between him and the rogues, I found myself threatened by them. He spoke very little, and it was always directed to the presence, never to anything else round him.”

“So he bashed heads with these goons?” I asked with some curiosity. “I bet he was quite strong to do that, with the brawl being a two against one.”

She smiled happily. “He was strong. I would say strong enough to tear a building if someone he cared about was injured before his eyes. Maybe even an entire city.”

“Sounds like Minos,” I commented with a small frown, the woman giggling but shaking her head.

“It’s amusing to imagine the two being compared. Not only for the surprising difference in size, but I guess that it has to do with the violent tone he would have when someone came close to harming me or Mora,” She admitted with some interest over the topic. “In fact, I think that it would be wrong to confuse your friend’s tiredness with my husband’s patience.”

I nodded at this correction and the narration resumed from there.

“I brought him back to the farm. It was odd at first, especially with how our personalities tended to clash with one another. And there was also the fact that he loved Alcohol. My little drunky, that’s what I used to call him,” She sighed quietly. “Our odd bond would continue to be as such up until New Year. The feast we gave back at that time had taken the entire town to visit the farm, especially with how much hard labor we had put together to create something so… beautiful.”

She stopped for a moment, blinking while a little hue of red spread on her cheeks. “A-And you can say that I ‘discovered’ more about him thanks to alcohol. Sizes don’t really matter.”

My eyes widened at the little allusion to the night I spent with Taffy. My own face enlightened in red at the realization, still unsure if the Cow Prime had done that on purpose or not.

“Oh.”

“‘Oh’ indeed,” She giggled calmly, nodding at my dumb response. “It was even more awkward when I noticed who I had given quite the night to. Let’s just say that it was a ‘fun morning’, the one that ensued.”

The woman leaned back on the pillow behind her on the coach, humming for a moment as she thought back at those particular moments.

“We had some conversation, a mix of shouting and angry words being thrown at each other… until we decided to give thought about the impossible.”

I blinked. “You mean that-”

“He started courting me suddenly after that night. It was tame at first and almost too difficult to notice by the lack of efforts and knowledge he would display in trying to win my affections,” Diana interjected with an amused tone. “There were some adorable scenes, some that didn’t make sense to me until I found out about his plans for that year’s Valentine.”

A giggle left her lips, turning in a brief chuckle as she started to shake her head at the memory.

“Imagine my surprise when I woke up to find an endless stream of boxes filled with chocolate completely covering my bedroom’s floor,” She explained quickly, almost biting her own thoughts as she described the scene. “I was elated by the monumental effort it took to bring all of that inside my own room without waking me up, but I was quite furious to find no name attached to this glorious gift.”

“How did you learn that it had been… him?” I asked quietly, slowly lulled by her tale and giving a brief yawn before nodding at her to continue.

“Oh, it had been one of his ‘helpers’ that revealed the mastermind of this strange deed. It had been one of the few workers that had known him well enough to help in this endeavor,” She replied with a little grin. “After pressing him over possible clues, he ultimately spilled the truth about what had happened and… everything made sense.”

I nodded at that, preferring to let her continue from there as I was curious about her following reaction at the discovery.

“I was confused at first, a storm of emotions kept me from properly acting as I didn’t know how to handle this issue,” The Prime admitted with a sigh. “In the end, I decided to try and bluntly seek some answers and some resolution.”

By inquiring more about-

“So I confronted him, pulled him aside for some private words and then promptly kissed him on his confused face.”

...What?

“He looked so surprised, but not enough to miss the little invitation I had given him for a private dinner.”

“I don’t want to push but… isn’t this going to-”

“I don’t plan to give that kind of details,” The woman replied swiftly, her cheeks flaring once again but she seemed well in control of her flustered self. “But that normal dinner would become a frequent event for the two of us and… after a year of dating and knowing each other better, we decided to become an item.”

A pause ensued from this development, her eyes appearing a little dull for just a moment.

“It was during this period that I finally noticed that… he wasn’t feeling well,” Diana continued, now with a somber voice. “He would have these moments of anger once in a while. Passing moments that showed me of his inner plight and… the reason why he had come here in Gossamer.”

I was interested by this topic, eyeing her face as to gesture her to continue.

“I could say that the confirmation of my suspicions came when I found myself attacked by quite the unexpected individual,” She said, drawing a tired sigh before continuing. “My attacker was quite fierce, but her attention was in the end channeled to deal with my husband. At that time we were already trying to have a child and so he was around me on a constant basis.”

I found myself looking at her with a wide-eyed look, my expression displaying surprise and worry.

“You were attacked?”

“Only verbally,” She mused with a nod. “I avoided anything physical because someone else held her back. I discovered that she was actually a good person and… that she overreacted when some news I had been unaware of had reached her ears.”

I frowned at this, throwing a quizzical look at Diana as the woman continued without hesitation.

“We were expecting a child,” The Prime commented happily, her smile resuming once more. “I was quite surprised to learn about this from the High Prime herself, the woman rushing to the farm to stop my attacker from committing some mistaken action.”

“She still attacked you,” I intervened with a hum.

“And she was punished for that, severely so,” The mother replied quietly. “Still, I think you can understand the issue that can arise from a child born from a Narakhan and a Prime. Minos told me that he explained this to you.”

I nodded at her, having heard from the Bull Prime that such a mix-up wasn’t generally one that saw a healthy birth or even a successful one to that, and she sighed once more before continuing.

“When we discovered that Mora was already growing inside of me, I decided to… try and increase the chances of a better conception, to make sure that her arrival wouldn’t present any issues to the babe,” The Cow Prime narrated tensely. “We were both sure that it would have worked, I was compatible with the turning but… the ritual ended up in a failure when his problem created a deadly obstacle.”

I blinked at this, starting to get a proper look at the situation that saw Diana getting caught with this sickness, but still failing to visualize the ‘problem’ that his husband had that could have caused this dangerous issue.

“The botched attempt also harmed him. His unstable situation worsened and forced him to take long checkups with Ambar over his state of mind as he was slowly giving in to his unique burden. In the end, when Mora was born, he ultimately decided to leave the farm for good,” She concluded calmly, turning her stare down once more to look at me. “I would still give him help with what I could offer him. Anything that would help his recovery was spent to give him enough coin to afford his cures but…”

I blinked, her silence born from uneasiness and discomfort was then captured by my answer.

“He stopped replying,” I finished for her. “Randal told me that there was no letter about him.”

“Is it wrong for me to give hope that eventually he will come walking by the door?” Diana asked with sorrow dripping from her words. “That he will come to visit before I die?”

I felt my stomach knot at the mention of the final bit, flinching at that vocally-expressed thought and I found myself unable to speak and give her an answer about that.

I blinked, then again and… I finally sighed.

“You are entitled to hope, Diana,” I said curtly, slowly getting away from her lap as I glanced at her with a serious look. “But remember that you will not be alone for… these trying moments.”

Another pause, this time the woman’s eyes widened a fraction at this little promise I was giving her, something I was so determined to keep for her without any hesitation.

A smile graced her features and she nodded.

“I know that, and I’m incredibly happy about it.” She replied slowly, her smile twitching with some amusement. “At least I will have my children around me.”

Then her eyes stared down to look at the floor as she realized that there was still someone missing.

I sighed. “I will find her,” I muttered quietly, causing her to lift her stare back up to look at my face. “I will find Mora.”

_**And then we will have a proper talk.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> Bukharin, isn't this a little too short for a chapter?
> 
> "Hmm... I guess this will do for now. I don't feel like adding too much to it for today and... Why would I skip having a pleasant conversation with you, Naerie?"
> 
> Because you have a duty to your readers? Still, I'm surprised that mother decided to skip this occasion.
> 
> "I think she's angry at me for delaying the update for this long. I bet she will go ballistic if she learns about how short it is and-"
> 
> I will not tell her anything. I know how terrible that would be for you.
> 
> "You are the best, Nae!"
> 
> At least you could tell them about your little fanfic you planned about Learning Curves-
> 
> "N-Not yet!"
> 
> Are you sure?
> 
> "Mostly, yes. But I guess it's now up in the air now that you told this detail."
> 
> EDIT: Chapter was expanded and a bit was retconned.


	16. The Quickening

**~Taffy’s POV~**

“I’m still surprised you just didn’t try to get into a relationship with Matt.”

The Bunny Prime almost tripped when she first heard Miles pointing this out as she passed near to where he was sitting.

With her green eyes now wide open, Taffy turned her surprised stare at the curious-looking Cat Prime as he tried and failed to properly take a sip from the hot cup of coffee he had been trying out.

There were only a few clients left within the mostly empty bar, patiently enjoying the last few hours before having to return to their morning jobs. 

Minos and the human had yet to come by and visit as they would usually do everyday, mostly because it was still too early to see them now. Without either of them, the entire workplace just felt so… quiet. 

“W-What?”

“I’m just saying that, while I understand that it’s kind of a big decision and all of that,” He hummed calmly. “I just can’t help but notice that annoyed look on your face when he just isn’t near to you-”

“I-It’s not that!” She interjected with a light blush on her face, setting the broom she had been using until now to lean by the nearby wall. “We just don’t feel that kind of attraction and-”

“I know he doesn’t, and I feel like he is genuine about this,” Miles admitted with a sigh. “But I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say that with the same certainty as his own.”

She blinked at the unexpected consideration, panicking internally over this embarrassing circumstance. 

She would have expected this from Minos, as the Bull Prime had shown interest in the predicament involving Matt and herself. 

Looking down at the stool beside Miles and then back to the counter, she noticed the bartender returning her silent question with a tired look. 

The owner merely nodded at her silent plea, giving her permission to engage in the conversation since there was no one around to serve for now.

Thus Taffy took a seat beside the Cat Prime, sporting a nervous grin as she sought to deal with this uneasy topic. 

“You- You could say that I’ve been thinking about that a lot,” The Bunny admitted with some hesitation. “I mean, Matt is nice, considerate and incredibly helpful-”

“I think that is the main requirements for Boyfriend Material-”

“I-It’s not like that!” The girl almost squeaked at the comment from her interlocutor, Miles was now sporting a smug smirk at having some control over the discussion. “T-There- There is much more than that.”

Humming, he gestured for her to continue as he finally manage to get a proper sip of his now cooler beverage. 

Taffy sighed, closing her eyes to ponder well how she was supposed to explain something this complicated and immensely awkward to someone like Miles.

There was nothing inherently wrong with the Cat Prime. He was actually a decent conversationalist when he wasn't drunk; the issued lingered in a flaw that made expressing things far more difficult.

He liked to interrupt the flow of conversations with sudden comments about the innuendos in some sentences. 

And in a discussion that focused on this 'warmth' she had been feeling since that night? Her chances of properly retelling what happened without acknowledging the 'action' in the open... was slim to null. 

Sighing again, she broke away from these thoughts and stared right back at him. 

“I noticed that… there's something fascinating about him that's been bugging me ever since our first meeting ,” The girl said with a soft voice. “Maybe it was because somehow, in my efforts to understand him, I saw something that I could relate to.”

Nodding slowly, Miles stayed silent as the fellow prime continued with her explanation. 

“Back at the time, I didn't think much of this sensation,” She continued with a small smile now plastered on her face. “I saw it more as a reason to draw a strong friendship out of it.”

There was a moment of quietness as Taffy was lost in that precise hug back when it all started.

It had felt so nice, so natural and… so pleasantly warm.

“You two do seem quite close to each other,” The Cat Prime admitted with a quick nod, causing the girl to break from her silence. “I’ve had some friends that were close like that but weren’t… as passionate as you two.”

She frowned at the term. “Passionate?”

“I mean, the hugging and the frequent instances with you two cuddling around,” He replied with a snort. “That... is quite an passionate attachment both of you have for being 'just friends'. ”

“I-It’s just like how he treats friends,” The Bunny weakly motivated. “I think Minos had mentioned having shared a hug with him at least twice in the last few days.”

Miles blinked in surprise. “Wait, you mean that these two have really hugged like… without being dared?”

“You are making it sound way more awkward than it looks like,” Taffy huffed with a confused tone, drawing a nervous look from the young man.

“It’s just that it’s… I’ve never hugged a guy ‘just because’ and I still prefer girls to guy when I need to hug someone.”

A giggle left her lips at his words. “I guess it’s a matter of people and upbringings.”

He shrugged, showing some doubt over it all.

“I mean, I suppose that's the case,” Miles admitted quietly. “But still, if he hugs his friends, then why didn’t he do that to me?”

Seeing the girl’s eyes narrow at him, he almost sputtered the content of his cup.

“N-Not like I’m trying get one but- It’s just-”

“That’s alright,” The young woman conceded with a kind smile. “I guess you think the issue is that he doesn’t consider you a friend, right?”

The Cat Prime nodded at the supposition and Taffy shook her head.

“I think the real issue is...” She paused, her small smile twitching for a moment before she continued. “That you don’t seem to have had a good shower for some time now.”

He groaned, his right hand reaching out for his face to complete a facepalm. 

“I’m… I had to deal with some other issues that got me delayed in having a working shower in the last few days,” He commented with a minor grimace. “I’m working on it, but it’s just that-”

“You know, you could ask for help from Matt and Minos,” The Bunny Prime interjected to push up this opportunity. “I’m sure they would gladly help you if-”

“I mean, wouldn’t they get annoyed at dealing with some hard-work without reason-”

“Showering is a necessity and they do consider you a friend,” She huffed while crossing her arms below her chest. “They wouldn’t mind to help so that you can finally enjoy some proper shower.”

He didn’t reply at first, surprised by the vehement pressure exerted by the girl and… ultimately he conceded a sigh.

“I guess I will have to ask and see then…” Then his golden eyes turned right back to stare at her. “But our conversation wasn’t about me, but about you.”

The young woman tensed up, her green eyes widened in realization. “O-Oh, right.”

She took a brief moment to sigh and then nod at the indirect request of resuming her tale.

“As I was saying, I thought that the peak that I could have reached with him would have been a close friendship,” Taffy muttered with some nervousness. “It was a perfect goal for me and I didn’t try to even ponder beyond that kind of circumstance.”

“And then ‘that’ happened,” Miles pressed on with a little smile.

She sighed. “Yes, 'that' happened, but there are a few reasons why it felt so natural to try going for it, despite my own beliefs about this relationship.”

“Reasons?”

“When he came by for that visit, I thought it would have been the usual friendly situation that I had back when I was close to my friends from the city,” The girl pointed out with some own fascination over that odd situation. “Yet, while I had expected to feel quite shy about having him around at home… it was quite the opposite.”

“You felt at ease?” Miles asked once again with the same curtness, engrossed by her words as she continued.”

“It was a surprise even for me. While I don't have issues with having friends around home, I usually feel a bit nervous when there are guests. With Matt, that wasn't the case.”

“You mean to tell me that it felt so natural that ‘you knew’ that he was a little more than a friend,” The Cat Prime pressed on, feeling a little confused by her phrasing.

“It’s… I guess you could say that, but I wasn’t certain until it was time for lunch and… it all began.”

And what a beautiful thing that began from that mere lunch together.

Taffy had always thought that her first time would have been incredibly disappointing. This is what she could remember hearing from a few of her formal friends back in culinary school. 

Surprisingly enough, that proved to be quite the wrong assumption. 

Despite Matt being a human with a stamina that should have been less than what a Prime of his frame and strength would have, the man had proved to be more than capable of not bringing her any annoyance over this predicament and…

It wouldn’t be a lie to just think how it had been quite difficult to catch some sleep with what she had been dreaming in the last few days.

Truly an unforgettable day… and night.

“Heh, were you thinking about ‘that’?”

Miles’ voice interrupted her trail of thoughts, getting a blush to spread once more on her face at the fact she had been caught day-dreaming so suddenly.

“N-No-”

There was no way he could have deduced so much from so little! How could he have-

“You are lying~.”

Raspberries!

“I-I’m not!” Her cheeks puffed at the teasing, her little irritation almost vanishing as a quiet chuckle erupted from Miles.

“S-Seriously, you a-are trying to keep this bottled up,” He pointed out mere moments later. “Trying to hide your real emotions, but I don’t see why you would-”

“I think… he has someone already,” She interrupted with a tired sigh, her green eyes moving away from the Cat Prime and right to look at the table’s surface. “I could see… some sadness whenever he looks at me while I’m smiling.”

It had been a strange detail that made their interactions somewhat confusing if now saddening altogether.

He would seem unaware of this glint from within his stare, but the indifference over the matter made the whole sight difficult to keep up with.

“Wait, you mean that Matt didn’t tell you if he has a girlfriend or not-”

“Matt is… amnesiac,” Taffy replied with a certain irritation, starting to feel uncomfortable about the discussion now. “He was found a little more than two weeks ago by his boss and since then he has been living with her family.”

“What? Really?” Miles’ questions were given in half-outburst, but then the young man paused as he realized that the one he was speaking with was starting to feel distressed. “I-I mean, I didn’t want to-”

“That’s alright,” The Bunny Prime said while giving a nod back to him. “I understand that you are curious about this but… it’s quite the private matters and if you want to know more, you should probably ask Matt about it.”

“I understand, you don’t want to give out this delicate situation to anyone without his permission,” He guessed as he finished drinking the last drop of coffee from his cup. “And what are you going to do about the fact you love him?”

…

“Hmm?” Her posture was a little tense as she hummed questioningly at the Cat Prime, but Miles didn’t seem surprised by her lack of reaction.

“He was found a little less more than two weeks ago by his new boss. Ever since then, he has been living with her family.”

She shuffled nervously in her seat at that continuation. 

“But to what end? It would just… make things even more awkward than now,” Taffy said with some hesitation. “It’s already difficult to not think about what happened a few days ago and-”

“Forgive me for saying this to you, Taffy,” Miles said with a serious but also faux-irritated tone. “But you are being incredibly stupid in keeping this to yourself. Expressing what you feel towards Matt would only do good, both for yourself and him.”

“But what if-”

“When I was still in that strange relationship with Hope, I think that if I had been a little more understanding of her. If I had been truthful with my emotions towards her, maybe...” He paused as his lips formed a sad thin line. “Maybe things would have gone much better than now.”

…

Taffy blinked as she stared silently at the sorrowful expression on the Cat Prime’s face as he thought back about that very instance that was formed by ‘ifs’ and other missed opportunities.

“Miles-”

“Matt once told me that telling someone about my own past mistakes can make the difference if I was careful when to point those out and to whom,” He spoke once more, this time a small smile appearing on his face. “While he might not return your same emotions, don’t restrain yourself from telling him what you feel about him. It’s… the right thing to do.”

The young woman returned the smile with a tinier one, yet she felt her interest piqued at the words brought by the fellow Prime as… there was an oddly-inspiring note in this little recollection.

Miles’ regret had costed him the chance of a relationship, and while that wasn’t a case that similar to hers, it was still a must to give it a try and set free the painful bubbles forming from within the chest.

Bubbles that were so close to burst, to let out some little more pain over the fact she was keeping quiet about it all.

She sighed, but nodded. “I… Thank you for telling me this, Miles. I appreciate this, really.”

He nodded back, his smile widening at her words.

“I suppose lessening my attachment to beer can really make the difference,” He pointed out with a comical tone. “Still, I hope you are planning to give him a speech soon or-”

“Not without a proper setting, it would be… ‘wrong’ to tell him straight away,” The girl admitted with a small sigh. “Maybe I could organize a little picnic and… see where things go from there.”

“It could work, just...” The Cat Prime hummed with his eyes narrowed at her with a teasing note. “Don’t forget to tell him about your emotions just because you want to ogle him.”

She froze and… tensed up.

“I-I don’t stare at him!” Taffy mumbled nervously, another bout of blushes appearing on her face. “N-not too much at least.”

Miles let out a chuckle and from there the conversation veered back to some simpler tones… until both Minos and Matt made their appearance to the bar, greeting both Miles and Taffy as they prepared to spend some hours by the farmers’ market by the nearby square.

_**The human was more than glad to accept the little picnic offer, his smile almost giving some chances to make tomorrow another grand day.** _

\-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d---------

**~New POV~**

If there was something that she was starting to hate about her life away from home, it was waking up with a massive hangover after the usual late night party from the day before.

Groaning tiredly as her eyes were still adapting to the dim light of the bedroom’s ceiling, the woman couldn’t certainly be glad of the ‘luxurious freedom’ she had gained from running away from her hometown.

With the search for her father technically complete and her main objective concluded, Mora Linda was starting to regret having not planned any smart step to take after finding out whatever had happened to her missing parent.

It was difficult enough that she had to learn how to live alone and without trustworthy people all around for some time, quite the opposite of what she had been accustomed back in Gossamer.

Now that she was without a true purpose to wander around, the Cow Prime was sure starting to miss the lovely farm where she had spent two whole decades of her life in.

The very place where her mother, Diana Linda, had created a small heaven for her children, and where she would had have a simple, happy future. 

Mora could still remember the boredom riddling her days during the last few years spent there, but she could say without a doubt that she would prefer living in ‘that boredom’ than having to do every strange job available in the places she was passing by in this aimless trip of hers.

The woman missed the times where she could just rest without having to fear having to deal with some issues from the past, or even to face any major repercussions with the odd predicaments she had been facing since her ‘escape’.

The recent messages from Randal were starting to slowly erode her doubts over approaching her big brother and see if the situation at the home front was alright or not, especially with the confusing news she had heard about the farm going in a strong decline ever since she had left.

The Cow Prime couldn’t just believe this. Her mother would have never allowed for the family property to come crash down, not even after that heated discussion that saw Mora bolting away from her home, away from the town and… away from Gossamer.

But what if something had happened while she had been away?

A legitimate question that was promptly buried in numerous reasons to not take a major risk in checking in with the Collie.

Her mother was a strong woman, there was nothing that could seriously keep her down.

Mora let out a sigh as she felt herself breaking away from the little sleepiness that was keeping her at bed, her mind slowly regaining some bearing of the current situation and… she was alone in that room.

Good. Actually, this was just perfect.

No distraction and no annoyances to face after dealing with some alcohol-induced poor life choices.

Carefully getting herself up from the mattress, the young woman let out a yawn while she stretched her arms a little.

Then she started to stand up from the lone bed of the hotel room she had rented the day before, her recollection of the night before giving her nothing to truly worry about now and… so she drifted back to her general situation.

She had to keep moving, never stopping in a single place for too long.

At least, that would have to be the case, until some ideas about what to do with her life started popping up and give her the opportunity to finally settle down. 

A very crappy plan, there was no hesitation in considering it as such, but it was the best she could afford. 

The alternative was easily ignored out of pride and fear. 

She couldn’t just return back home like this, not after the harsh words that had been handled between herself and her mother.

Still fresh in her memory, a reminder of how dangerous her temper can get without a careful approach behind it all. 

Finesse wasn’t her thing. 

Thus, she had been doing poorly in getting more answers from the older Prime before leaving her home. 

Sure, there was no reason to not believe that Diana Linda would have forgiven and taken her back within the closeness of family…

But would it have been correct of herself to just accept? Even with how her stupid approach had almost torn apart the bond she had with her mother

Mora had done something wrong by childishly pursuing the truth about her father, by ignoring her mother’s advice to not dig any further than the information the older woman was glad to give out. 

It had all been within her rights to know more about her missing parent after so many years spent ignoring the issue, but she should have also expected that things wouldn’t have been that much nice if there wasn’t much said about him.

The scene at that laboratory-like building had been fairly unsettling, terribly so considering the ramifications of what she had seen back there.

If her father had been stuck in that place for years if not decades, what happened to the various money her mother had sent to ‘help him while he was oversea’?

Was it stolen by the same organization that was using the Narakhan as a lab rat? Or maybe there was something else that she was missing all over the clues afforded by her research.

A groan left her lips as her thoughts dissipated at the sudden and vibrant noise coming from the small cellphone by the bedside.

Her right hand carefully hovered over the device as she quietly checked for the number of the caller.

…

It wasn’t one she knew about, and this made things a little annoying, as there was actually someone she was trying to avoid right now. 

Idward had been far too persistent with his flirting.

The wine at the event where he had met him making some impressive work in keeping her senses numb enough to sustain the conversations she had shared with him before going for some fireworks later that night.

It wasn’t his fault that she couldn’t feel the spark from his forward attitude, but the overall stubbornness about it all made him… quite an object of irritation for her.

The issue was that hangovers seemed to heighten the irritating effects from his intellectual side. 

But he shouldn’t be aware what her phone number is, especially with how quick she had bolted from that unplanned encounter that was slowly developing in quite the unpleasant circumstance to deal.

He would eventually find someone that would love him back. He had a chance, but it wouldn’t be with her. 

Mora Linda was far from meeting someone that could keep up with her whole personality and… flaws.

'Instead of continuing her internal musing, she ultimately decided to answer the call. 

From there, she would think about what to do after that. 

“Hello?” Her voice sounded a little strained, her throat aching a little at having to work so early in the morning.

“ _Hello, am I speaking with Mora?_ ” The caller sounded fairly nervous, but he sounded unfamiliar if not somewhat harmless

“That’s me.”

“ _My name is Matt, Matt Newcastle and… I’m contacting you for a serious situation that require your attention-_ ”

“Look… pal,” She groaned at the phone. “I understand that it might sound a little rude but… it’s fairly early in the morning here and I would appreciate if you just skip to the point. I still have stuff to do and-”

“ _Mora, I understand- but the situation can’t be summarized in a few words because of the gravity-_ ”

“And I think I will just close the call if you can’t just tell me what’s going on-”

“ _Y-Your mother is dying._ ”

…

What.

What did he just say?

There was no way that Diana Linda was close to passing away. Randal would have-

Oh right, he had trying to call her quite insistingly until now.

The frequent increase of the messages could suggest that something was wrong back home but… that Diana Linda was dying?

Unbelievable!

“I swear, _Newcastle,_ I’m not up for games and I will not continue with this fucking prank when-”

“ _It’s related to your father,”_ He pressed on with some nervousness in his voice at the chances. “ _Something that is connected to the fact he is... a Narakhan_.”

There was a moment of silence, her green eyes widening as whoever was on the other side of the call dropped a hint far too difficult to just ignore.

The only people that she was aware of that knew about her father’s true nature were herself and her mother… so how was this stranger aware of this very secret?

Did her mother finally spill the secret to someone else? Did Randy know about this or-

“Ok, let’s rewind things a little bit,” The Cow Prime said, her mind finally out of her sleepy phase. “Matt, how do you know about ‘that’ and… why are you the one calling me?”

“ _Considering that you have been ignoring Randal’s calls? It was best for me to try since we have never met before,_ ” He pointed out quietly, getting a quick flinch out of her at hearing the light chiding tone in his voice. “ _The reason I was made aware of Diana’s conditions is because I’m the newest and sole worker here at the farm_.”

  
  


Mora frowned at this last detail, remembering that there was a little army of people working at Las Lindas that were as close as family to Diana Linda when she had first gone away.

Did they just started to leave once the declining health of her mother had been revealed?

“B-But what about mom’s conditions?” She half-stuttered, resuming the conversation with the important topic. “Can you tell me a little more about it?”

“ _Sure, I think it’s… correct for you to know,_ ” He began to say with a tenser tone. “ _Your mother tried performing a full Narakhan conversion when she was pregnant. She did this because there was a risk that you would have suffered serious illnesses if you had been born from a Prime mother-'_ ”

“A botched ritual?” Her voice was soft, fragile even as her eyes widened in recognition as she knew where the man was going with this reasoning.

“ _Y-Yes_.”

No, there was no way that her mother would have-

But she was so kind, she would have done that if it was to make sure her child was born well and…

Gods, that… that was messed up.

“I-Is she alright?”

“ _She is mostly fine,_ ” Relief entered within her mind at that confirmation, yet she was still tense and for good reasons. “ _But she is mostly restrained to the proximity of the house. Randal helps with giving her the proper medicines while I go through the labor of the farm._ ”

Him alone? 

Surely this ‘Matt Newcastle’ had to be some tough Prime to be able to do all the tasks needed at the farm without any major help.

But there was no time to further waste in thinking about little things and Mora pressed on.

“D-Does she know about-”

“ _I told her that I would have given a try to contact you, but she isn’t aware that I’m currently speaking with you if that’s what you are asking about._ ”

At least she wouldn’t have to deal with her mother so suddenly and through a phone of all means.

An encounter so important would need her to be present, to make it a direct conversation rather than an impersonal one because of the phone.

Still, there was little that she could do about it and… she gave a sigh. 

“I-I see. Thank you for calling me and-”

“ _Mora._ ”

Her mouth closed at the interruption.

“ _I understand that there has been some reason to see you leaving the farm, to avoid keeping contacts with your family and… I will not try to intervene in your family’s privacy until it’s a matter of necessity,_ ” The young man said with a calm but determined voice. “ _But I have to implore you to please return home to at least see your mother, she needs you-_ ”

“I-I wouldn’t bring her happiness-”

“ _You would-_ ”

“But then I would have to tell her about what I had to go through,” She continued, ignoring his efforts to reply her. “I didn’t make a good life after leaving the farm and… she wouldn’t be happy about it.”

The things she had to do to survive even now? There was not a single day that she seriously didn’t regret the easier life of the farm.

But her pride couldn’t just allow it. Mora couldn’t just bear with the fact that she would have to describe the unpleasant stuff she had to do to have a warm bed and some food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

“ _Mora-_ ”

“It wouldn’t work,” She pressed on with some stubbornness, tensing up at the intense exchange.

“ _She just wants to see you and-_ ”

“It would hurt her-”

“ _Mora, your mother is dying and you are clutching at straws for reasons to not visit her!_ ”

“I-”

“ _I don’t care whatever life you have been conducting while away!_ ” He half-yelled through the phone. “ _I will not inquire about it, nor I will try to force you to come here- but I remind you that the woman that took care of you for most for your life is here and she wants to see you before dying. Do you understand her wish?!_ ”

…

Why was her sight getting blurry?

Something wet fell on her lap, then again and… again.

“I- I think that-”

She held back as a sob tried to get out of her lips but was stopped before dignifying how badly she had wanted to do something that horrible.

The discussion should have mattered little, the issues that she first expereinced were now well away to become once again troublesome, and…

“Matt… I’m sorry- I- I will...”

There was a sigh coming from the other end of the call.

“ _Look, I’m sorry that I sounded a little… harsh with my words- but you have to understand that the situation is bad,_ ” Matt started with a softer approach. “ _I understand that… there are some doubts within you that prevent you from coming back. While I can’t just fully understand you, I can say from what Randy told me that… you are a good person, Mora._ ”

She let out a sniff, her free hand reaching for her eyes as to cover them.

“ _I think he is… right. You don’t seem someone that fail to see the problem and I know that it’s difficult but… you need to try. Not just for Diana but for… yourself,”_ The young man continued with his speech. “ _This is after all your home. Las Lindas was and still is the place where the Linda family will find a safe haven. So please, I beg you, at least consider coming back to visit her._ ”

…

She sighed, her green eyes given once more sight over the device’s screen and… she nodded.

“ _ **I-I will come back.”**_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> I bet some people are thinking- but 'insert goodish title for author' why are you presenting Mora this early, it's just past half the story and- there is some 'puppy-kicking' planned in a few chapters from now.
> 
> And before anyone asks, no I don't dislike Mora and the reason why she sounded this much... frail over the call was about the topic itself.
> 
> EDIT: Corrections: Ant0nius (FFN)  
> Family is a strong reason for one to show their inner core and sometimes, when the situation is truly that dire as a parent dying, they will get emotional over it.
> 
> 'Still, I would have thought you would have waited a little more. I do love the fact that my little crush is finally coming back to her home but... it's awfully sad that she is forced to experience such a horrible situation.'
> 
> Life can't exist with just good things. The bad stuff... teaches us to care about what we have, the little and insignificant things that made our existence whole.
> 
> 'Poetic... but I still don't forgive you for having gone to cut your hair this short.'
> 
> What?
> 
> 'It lacks the same... fuzziness.'
> 
> It's softer and-
> 
> 'It's not fluffy enough!'
> 
> Sigh, you pest of a-
> 
> 'By the way, dear readers, did you know that there is now out a new story written by this very author about... Gasp! University shenanigans?! And I'm in it.'
> 
> Much to my immense displeasure-
> 
> 'You know that I have my Bo staff around, right?'
> 
> I mean- much to my immense displeasure-
> 
> 'Meanie~!'
> 
> I have indeed written a story where Ambar has a more active role. The name is 'Learning: Affection' and for those that might recognize part of the title, yes it is set in the same time period of Learning Curves (but this time we start from the beginning of their journey with a curious protagonist).
> 
> 'It's available in FFN, in Sufficient Velocity, in Spacebattles, in FurAffinity and SoFurry. What a galore of various ways to read such a curious piece of work!'
> 
> Hopefully, not a bad one.
> 
> 'Bah, I think you are doing... well?'
> 
> I will give you a B+ for at least trying.
> 
> 'Yay!'


	17. Haunting Past

**~Matt’s POV~**

Humming quietly, I carefully positioned the small picnic basket onto the grassy ground.

It was a sunny day in the outskirts of town, and the morning was already showing some pretty sights for those that were awake to see them. 

A morning that saw me having nothing to do at the farm for how much early it was, allowing me the opportunity to kindly accept Taffy’s offer to have a picnic at this stage of the day.

This wasn’t a bad idea, as it’s been ages since I’ve spent time like this with someone else. What made this event more interesting was that we both had contributed by bringing along a few baskets filled with food.

The plan was simple, and terribly delicious.

The Bunny Prime had prepared some small cakes and other sweet-food to be used as appetizers before lunch, I could recognize some apple-like flavor from the mere delicious scent coming from the container.

Meanwhile, I had been focused on making some food that was meant for us to have for lunch.

I had prepared several sandwiches ranging from meat-lover to vegetarian as an effort to give both of us the chance of enjoying the pleasant time shared together the best way possible.

The young woman sighed happily as she sat down on the light-green blanket, fixing the hems of her strawberry-pink dress.

We picked the little area of grass near to the shade of a lone tree near the muddy path that led to the inner section of the settlement, deciding that it was for the best to have some place where to rest in case we felt the need for a nap.

Sitting near her while humming quietly, I noticed that her green eyes directly glanced at my face, causing me to mirthfully frown back at her.

“Something’s got your attention?”

She blinked at my question, giving a small smile in return.

“You know, I didn’t expect you would shave your beard without a good reason”She added that last bit with a snort. “You look a lot younger without that mess.”

I groaned at her thought, almost facepalming.

“It wasn’t that bad,” I replied with a huff, thinking about it a little as I could remember Diana pointing out that I looked ‘cleaner’ without that much hair on my face.

Same for Randal.

Probably Minos as well, with how nervous he appeared to be when I met him at the pub earlier.

‘Dangit.’

“Sure thing, Matt,” The Bunny replied with a mocking sigh. “I guess you are mourning the passing of that thorny bush you had on your face.”

Snorting, the effort to get annoyed at her smug comment faltered the moment I got an idea on how to react to her bravado.

Taffy let out a quick squeak as I pushed her to the floor, softly taking hold of her shoulders and smiling close to her face.

“Truly?” I inquired with an amused voice, letting quite the pretty blush to spread on her lovely face.

She hadn’t expected my little counter, and she ended up sparing some seconds of silence to recollect her thoughts before giving me a raspberry.

“Jerk,” The Prime retorted with a huff. “You are pressing a little too much on my arms.”

I blinked, glancing away from her face as I turned to see if this was true but… just as I did this, she moved and pushed me to the side.

My eyes widened as I suddenly realized what had just happened.

Now I was the one pinned on the blanket, a giddy-looking young woman sparing me a mirthful glance at the fact she had succeeded with her trick.

“But yes, your beard was itchy to the touch,” The pink-haired lady hummed back with an entertained voice as she moved her hands to the near food basket, rummaging inside of it while still sitting on my chest.

“There,” She continued with a sigh. “Try this.”

A small fork hovered just a little bit above my lips, a small-sized piece of apple cake on it.

I leaned up and snagged the food with a swift bite, taking my time to study flavor and texture, but ultimately I nodded at the delicious sweet.

“Yummy, isn’t it?” She inquired quietly, before retracting the fork and taking another piece herself to try. “Yep, this is one of the best ones I’ve ever made.”

I glanced up as she continued to take more bites out from the cake inside the basket, making me frown as she seemed to forget where she was currently sitting by.

I blinked, hoping that it was just a willing trick once again, but then she seemed to relax on her ‘seat’, swiftly devouring the cake with gusto.

Finally, I decided that it was about time to have her experience some retaliation for ignoring me so much.

Taffy took a moment of pause to properly enjoy the cake some more, giving me the chance to swiftly move my hands by her side and poking at the same time both of her flanks.

She tensed up suddenly, a yelp drowned by the food still in her mouth and she was quick to bend forward towards me.

Quickly wrapping my arms around her, I pushed her nose on my chest while nuzzling on her hair.

“Y-You jerk.”

“You literally forgot about me,” I shot back with a hum, while enjoying the sweet fragrance of… raspberries?

The young woman moved her head up, chin resting on my chest as she stared up at my face.

“I was just enjoying some cake-”

“That we were supposed to share,” I interjected with a sigh. “You truly are distracted today.”

Taffy blinked at my comment. “Am I? I think you are the one distracted with how long you have been looking below my face.”

“I-I think I’ve explained to you already that your little fluff is mesmerizing,” I admitted with some embarrassment. “Seriously, why is that so hypnotic?”

“I think you are the only one thinking so, Matt,” The Bunny Prime mused quietly. “Still, can I ask you something more serious?”

…

That was quite the sudden topic change.

I gave her a slow nod, surprised by this immediate change of course.

“Sure?”

She nodded back, smiling nervously.

“I-I know that this might sound a little difficult to answer, but can you tell me about your parents?”

I let the query sink a bit into my mind before answering, trying to muster up some words for the reply.

“I suppose I can...” I whispered quietly while staring up at the branches of the nearby tree. “What do you want to know? Anything specific or-”

“It’s just that… you rarely mention them, even though you promised that you were going to say more about them instead of… ignoring this little promise.”

I felt my throat tightening at that comment, flinching briefly at that comment.

“I guess I did...” I admitted with a quiet tone. “I’m sorry if I did break any promises or-”

“You didn’t,” Taffy interrupted with a sigh. “It’s just that I would like to hear more about them.”

Grasping my shirt tighter, the Bunny Prime tensed a little more at the fact that we were talking about parents.

She did tell me what happened with her mother, and how things had almost spiraled out of control if it hadn’t been for her grandfather.

But I could only connect this curiosity to the fact that she wanted to know more about what good parents were meant to be.

The young woman didn’t spare herself to point out that she dreamed to have quite the numerous family once she properly settled down with someone, and any tales I could offer her could become good means to achieve this dream.

“Well, there was this time when I decided to try and help my mom around with the little garden she had at home,” I started to narrate with a calm voice. “I was pretty young, around four years old, and in my childish mind, the best way to help my mother with her garden was to use bleach on her plants.”

There was a look of dread on her face. “That’s pretty… bad as something to try. Even for someone that young.”

“I was quite the pest,” I admitted with a little shrug. “The little nightmare that just did things to garner the attention of those around me. But boy, I can’t forget how furious mom was when she discovered what I did.”

“I can only imagine that she was mad to you for causing that disaster.”

I smiled a little at the understanding tone in her voice, but I was far from done with this story.

“Actually, she was more angry about the fact that I had somehow got hold of a bottle of bleach when she had been careful enough to put it away from my reach,” I replied with a sigh. “As I’ve said, I was pretty much the nightmare at that stage of my life.”

“Making your parents’ lives quite tough, but… I guess you learned to not play with bleach.”

“I-I was four, I remind you,” I shot back with a hint of embarrassment. “And I’m certainly not running around with bottles of bleach in my hands any more.

“True, true,” Taffy giggled a little at my mock-outburst. “But still, I doubt that was your worst situation.”

I blinked. “My worst situation?”

Did she seriously want to know about the worst I’ve ever faced?

I mean, I did have that kind of story but…

There was a reason why I wasn’t that much at ease to bring it up.

Some confusing reasons to be fair, but still enough to urge myself to not think too much about back then.

“Well, there was one time when I almost broke my leg because I had tripped badly on some rock during a trip when I was about… ten or so,” I mentioned with an uneasy tone. “I was scared at first because it had happened during nighttime. I had gone out pretty far from the camp my family had set up, leaving me without any means to call them for help other than shouting until my breath turned itchy.”

Her green eyes widened. “T-That sounds horrible,” She whispered with some surprise dripping from her words. “Were you hurt by some other animals or-”

“Luckily enough for me, I was just frightened to a shivering state by the various noises around me,” I reassured her with a tiny smile. “Nothing truly dangerous, as dad found me about two hours later when he noticed that I wasn’t sleeping in my tent.”

“Still, you had to have been scared to death. All alone, in the dark,” The Bunny Prime pressed on with some surprise.

“Oh, but I didn’t leave that little experience without issues that troubled me for the next decade,” I pointed out with a hum. “For some time I was subject to panic attacks when I found myself dealing with closed spaces that I knew much about. It was problematic since it would happen every time I went to school, or even when I started Uni.”

“But, aren’t you still affected by it?” Taffy muttered with a frown. “I mean, you don’t seem prone to have those kinds of reactions when going to new places.”

My lips parted, ready to speak up the real curious element that made that predicament fairly odd to even think about.

But, should I really show this little confusion over the matter? Especially when I myself was unsure about what had caused that to happen?

Glancing at the Prime’s waiting green eyes, I tensed a little at the pressure coming from those demanding orbs and… I sighed.

“I was meant to suffer from this trauma for much longer than I did. It was about a few months before my parents passed away that I actually noticed that something had changed with my disposition to hang around new places,” I ultimately explained with a nod. “There was no panic, there was no sudden stressing over the closed spaces… but for some time, I was prone to get angry with everyone and everything.”

“Is there a reason for you to behave like that or-”

“That’s the thing. I don’t have any reasons, or at least I can’t remember what truly got me that quick to get furious,” I interjected with a drained sigh. “I lashed out with pretty much everyone that knew me, even my parents weren’t spared by the odd episodes I had about little things. I was just-”

“Angry at yourself?”

…

I blinked, returning my glance down to Taffy and away from the sky.

“Yes. And the maddening thing is… that I don’t know why it was like that.”

“Maybe you did make a mistake, something that made you so nervous that you just ignored the trauma you had.”

“Perhaps,” I muttered quietly. “Yet… I think there is much more to it. If I did make a mistake ‘that big’, I’m sure it would have stuck around in my head even until now. But… nothing.”

Taffy sighed, and slowly fixed herself better on my chest as I lessened the hold of my arms over her waist while I told her about those stories.

“Maybe it’s just something that you’ve bottled up unconsciously because of how impactful it was to your inner self,” The pink-haired lady suggested calmly. “Maybe you tried to cope with it by burying it deep in your mind after your parents… passed away.”

I gave her a silent nod, yet I felt something clicking in my mind.

This kind of conversation was slowly connecting with the words I shared with Diana about the circumstances that had led me there.

But the correlation was abysmal, if not coincidental considering that I hadn’t experienced any abnormal degrees of anger when I wounded up at Las Lindas.

In fact, I would even say that I had been gloomier than I had been mere weeks earlier, even before that visit at the pub…

I felt the guilt resurfacing back with a stronger kick than usual, one that not even a normal hangover should have brought me to experience.

And yet I did for some reason.

But why have I felt so guilty until a few days ago? Why did I feel so furious when I lost my troublesome trauma-induced panic attacks?

Why?

There was no answer from my core, only some minor headaches that threatened to disrupt my concentration for the work that awaited me in a matter of a few hours from now.

But I had to think about this thoroughly once I was done with the work, maybe when I was done with dinner and left alone with only my thoughts.

Instead of being able to muse more on the matter, I felt Taffy slowly climbing closer to my face, her stare directed at me as she settled there.

I blinked at her rapt interest over my face.

“S-Something wrong?” I asked quietly, stuttering early on as I was still trying to understand why she had adjusted herself much closer than before.

She hummed. “You know, Matt… can I say that I might have lied to you?”

…

What?

What was she talking about?

My brain scrambled for an explanation over her heavier words, but before I could try to get an answer out of her, I found myself facing a strong sign that something was aloof.

She leaned in and took a quick peck at my lips, before leaning back.

“I… I might be actually in love with you, Matt.”

I blinked again, then once more before finally taking note of her words.

“Y-You are?”

She gave a solid nod before snuggling on my chest. “I am.”

“B-But I thought that-”

“I thought this too at first,” She interjected in a whisper, looking quite nervous. “But then I realized that I really like you. A lot.”

There was some silence between the two of us, with the wind blowing softly around and moving some of the grass around the blanket, as we both thought about what we were supposed to do now that this was out.

I was… surprised, but also confused how I was supposed to deal with this new development.

I saw Taffy as a lovely individual, quite the beautiful young woman with the most-delightful of personalities. She was cute, she was responsible and… she was still my friend.

Despite the endearing traits she had, I still couldn’t see her as more than that.

I couldn’t even explain this myself. It just felt that any further steps beyond that would see the two of us dealing with quite some complications for our individual lives.

Taffy wanted a big family, and I wouldn’t have been able to provide her with one, considering the low compatibility between humans and Primes.

“I’m glad,” I replied slowly. “Actually, I’m happy you told me this. I really am… but I hope you understand that-”

“I know.”

...What?

“I had this hunch about it. I could feel that you weren’t going to return my feelings, but I still wanted to tell you about them,” She explained with a calm sigh. “We have been honest to each other. I feel like I should tell you this instead of just keeping quiet about the matter.”

“You aren’t wrong. I’m thankful that you told me this,” I pointed out with a kind tone. “And while I’m sorry that I can’t return these feelings, I still appreciate that you were brave enough to come up to me with this.”

I hugged her, nuzzling her forehead with my chin as she drowned her face on my chest.

“You are one of the individuals I care about here in this town, Taffy,” I continued with a resolute voice. “Maybe the one I care for the most. You have been there since I first met you, and I always cherish your company.”

The Prime sniffed a little, her face still hidden from my sight, but I was fairly sure that she was starting to cry even with how much careful I was being with my words.

“You are so stubborn in helping others, I guess I can say that this time I will be the one to give you some help,” I concluded with a hum. “Because I sure as hell am not going to end this embrace until I know you are fine and all.”

…

“And by fine, I mean really fine. I will not accept a silly ‘I am fine’.”

She snorted a little at this last comment, finally turning her stare up and showing her tears.

“E-Even though you aren’t much experienced with this,” She said while sniffing a little more. “You would still go through this. I-I can work through this on my own as an adult-”

“You are an adorable Bunny with a silly complex of helping people that doesn’t easily accept the help of others,” I remarked with a frown. “You are lovely, Taffs, but I will still put you in Cuddle-jail.”

Her lips twitched in amusement at the made-up word. “C-Cuddle-jail?”

“I’m working on it,” I admitted with mock-embarrassment. “In fact there is also gulag-hug, and embrace-cage.”

Taffy let out a giggle. “O-Oh no. N-Not the gulag-hug.”

I chuckled back at her comment.

“See? I’m getting progress done here.”

“N-Not truly!” She affirmed while snuggling once more in the warmth. “Y-You are far from it.”

…

“Really?”

There was a tiny smile on her face. “Maybe.”

I smiled back. “Then I guess I need to intensify my efforts!” I exclaimed determinedly. “I will have to unleash my trump card!”

She frowned at my words, confused by what I was talking about, but then the young woman tensed as she felt my hands by her hips.

“N-No. You know that I’m-”

“I know,” I interjected with a bright smile. “That is why I’m doing this!”

She didn’t have time to react as my fingers started to tickle all over her.

The effect was immediate, giggles and full-blown laughs erupting from that interaction as the girl was brought to a state of endless amusement over what I was doing.

My own lips parted to let out my own chuckles at the scene, enjoying the developing situation the more it continued.

From there, the little picnic went smoothly, and without much of an issue.

Lunch passed quickly and I escorted Taffy back to her flat, ending up getting a new promise of visiting the day after tomorrow.

But even though she seemed to have recovered from that problematic dilemma we had faced together, I still felt that much was left unsolved about this relationship.

And, that this had to be dealt with in proper circumstances.

* * *

**~Minos POV~**

There were a few things that could instantly get Minos this tense and nervous, even if he was enjoying his new life in the peaceful region of Gossamer.

Most of those issues correlated one way or another to his past. Back to the war, back when he was still part of the Emperor’s side.

All of these troubles came from his early naivety, or from his initial lack of understanding to the struggles his fellow Primes had to go through during and after the battle with his former lord.

The pain, the sorrow, nothing he tried back then had matched with the dreadful conflict that had dragged around for millennia.

He had collaborated willingly with those that were the aggressors, with those that had so easily shed the blood of many innocents for the sake of some vain man with a thirst for power.

While Grace had led him through a recovery path after defecting, having been the one to genuinely help him regain some control over his life, she had been but a minor part of what had truly gotten him out of that horrible misunderstanding.

An individual that was unique, a ‘pest’ that he had been so driven to try and kill back when he still served the Empire, but that eventually bested him one too many time, showing him mercy all of those times.

He had faced defeat several times, the most humiliating moments in his life for someone that prided himself over his immense strength.

Minos was the Crest of Earth after all, his raw power was supposed to be unmatched to normal beings.

Yet it had still happened.

He had faced a brutal and harsh series of losses that led him to stray away from the collected and submitted state of mind that had left him a puppet for the evildoers, and right into the peaceful and understanding arms of those that wished to bring unity in that divided house.

The Bull Prime was aware that some things were just impossible to be achieved, yet that little human had done it back then.

How foolish he had been to consider his deeds so miserably early on, how childish he had been for diminishing the worth of such a brave warrior.

A brave warrior that he had long forgotten about, lost in his memories after so many centuries gone by without his presence lingering in this universe.

And now, much to his immense surprise, he was disproved of the chances that the young man had perished after that final battle against the Emperor.

After a quick stay at the local town’s bar, Minos was quick to make a return to his home, to reach out for the communication device and the number connected to Ambar’s private phone.

He was nervous, he was panicking and… he can’t still believe it.

But it couldn’t be otherwise.

The resemblance was just too similar to be a coincidence, there was no way that his sight had messed the vision he had been bestowed earlier that morning when he had graced upon Matt’s face.

He had removed his beard, shaved off and left no injuries on his ‘clean face’.

Gone was the simple camouflage, the little detail that had just hidden away the true key of familiarity that had been hovering over the young man.

The trusting manners, the familiar friendliness, and his sense of kinship having matured over the years.

There was no doubt in his mind and heart, yet he had to seek an audience with Ambar.

She had to know, her eyes saw what many failed to catch at first impressions, her Crest having bestowed her of the capacity of noticing the most insignificant-looking details while making it the most important of them all in every situation.

The communication service took some time to properly establish, but his attempt was met with success as he was greeted with the sight of a red-haired Bear Prime lying sprawled on some comfy-looking sofa while reading a strange book titled ‘101 New Mom Jokes’.

Ambar glanced to the side where the phone was visualizing the call and smiled.

“Oh, hello there, Minos,” The woman yawned while greeting the fellow Prime. “How are you doing, big guy? Any reason for calling this early, and without notice?”

Normally, he would have been annoyed by the childish manner he was being treated like, knowing full well that the Crest of Wisdom was merely trying to get a reaction out of him. This time, he wasn’t in the mood for playing games.

“Ambar, we need to talk of something fairly serious.”

She blinked. “If it’s about the night calls, I can already tell you that I’m not going to stop and-”

“Matt Newcastle, he is the one that defeated me many centuries ago, isn’t he?”

The interruption was followed with several seconds of silence, as the Bear Prime closed her book and looked briefly surprised by the words uttered by Minos.

“Come again?” She inquired with a more serious voice.

“He is that knight, the one that was assigned to-”

“Stop! Okay, I see where you are going, don’t continue right now,” The woman interrupted suddenly, picking up her phone and rushing away from the room she had been staying by.

The Bull Prime followed her actions for some time, keeping quiet as he tried to understand what Ambar was doing by running around so quickly and without explanation.

A door closed and the Crest sighed as she dropped by her bed.

“Please, continue but… let’s keep the discussion-making to a limited degree about this matter,” The woman finally spoke again. “If Geecku ends up learning about this, we would be dealing with quite the issues all at once.”

He blinked. “So Matt is-”

“It’s him, yes.” Ambar interrupted with a huff. “He is the ‘Grand Knight’, the one that fought for ‘Her’, and was the funniest target to tease about back when he was around.”

“But then why didn’t you tell me?” He asked with some irritation. “I understand that you wish to keep this a secret, knowing how big this one is, but you could have told me about-”

“There are more complications that it might seem, Minos,” The Crest of Wisdom admitted with a sigh. “Complications that I can’t even talk with Apogeo for too long before the Gods become too uneasy about it.”

The Bull Prime tensed a little at the mention of the deities.

The Gods had been dormant for centuries now since the end of the War, many having just decided to reduce their presence and capacity to intervene for the sake of allowing the proper healing for humanity and primekind as a whole.

For them to have a role behind the disappearance and the return of the Grand Knight was somewhat worrying.

“But why would they decide to meddle with his life?” Minos finally asked. “While I understand the blessings he had received back during his first steps in his journey, he should have been allowed to enjoy the fruits of his efforts. The end of the War was partly won thanks to-”

“The Gods have been very cryptic about the subject itself. Even Apogeo doesn’t have a full understanding behind their actions over this specific case,” Ambar admitted with a serious tone. “But I can assure you that he will not disappear anymore. Not with how much effort that has been put to make him return once more here, on Neo-Earth.”

“B-But why can’t he remember anything?”

The question was a legitimate one.

Why couldn’t Matt just remember the past? Why couldn’t he just remember the multiple adventures he had shared with so many people from across the entire galaxy.

A true explorer, but ultimately his main role was to protect the greatest thing for Primekind.

Their chance of having a future once the War was over, to have someone to believe into.

Sadly, with his disappearance and the dreadful toll during the final battle for Earth, the young woman that was once the ward of this single human had long decided to live as a recluse, as a frightened child before the crumbling hopes of having the best ending possible.

Truly a depressing outcome, considering the efforts that Ambar had to take to make sure that nothing fell apart at the lady’s decision.

Truly a pity.

“When forced to make his way back home, he was reluctant to let go of his bonds,” The Crest of Wisdom gave a tired sigh while commenting on this. “He tried to oppose their wishes, to stay there to bask in the resulting peace… but he was still sent back. Even erasing his memories of what had happened wasn’t enough to deny him the furious state that lingered for him for the months that followed.”

“So why are his memories still sealed? It’s been years now, I’m sure he would easily hold back from-”

“He blames that anger for killing his parents,” Ambar interjected with a grim tone, causing Minos to stare in shock at her. “He really believes that by driving them away, he was the one cause that killed them.”

“That’s foolish, he never mentioned that-”

“He didn’t need to. Why would he give out his greatest guilt?”

Silence resumed with Ambar staring at the ceiling of her bedroom with a tired look, her light-blue eyes showing hints of sadness about the topic.

How much did Matt keep to himself despite their friendship? How much was he bottling up for the sake of not hurting others?

Was this why he was so appeasing? Why the fiery personality the ‘Grand Knight’ was known for was diluted in that docile maturity of his?

“Never think that I’m doing this happily, Minos,” The Bear Prime muttered quietly. “I know that there are some shaky elements in whatever they are planning, and while I can’t tell you what is going on, I can assure you that I will keep everything safe for everyone. Even for Matt.”

The Bull Prime took a long sigh. “I know that you wouldn’t diminish the value of any life, Ambar. But I beg you to not let anything mess things up about it.”

“I will not,” The woman promised with a solid nod. “But I need you to promise me that you will not tell anyone else about this.”

“Why?”

“Some would rush to meet up with him. I know that Pulsar, Howl, Xeanica, and Bengala would restrain themselves and understand the need of not hurting him while he is still amnesiac,” The Crest of Wisdom admitted. “The rest would just try to catch up with him, ignoring the fragility of the predicament.”

“So… we just wait?” Minos inquired quietly, hoping that he could still try something about it.

“If you think you can help him around without sounding suspicious, then you may try,” Ambar said with a nod. “But don’t mention anything that could damage his mind when the memories start to resurface.”

…

“I understand,” The Bull Prime hummed quietly. “I guess that now, I will be more cautious about this.”

The woman smiled and nodded at him. “Indeed. Be careful around him, Minos.”

The call ended and the Crest of Earth sighed at the draining revelation that was now confirmed in his mind.

It was true, he was back.

The ‘Grand Knight’, the one that had one of the greatest duties, was once more wandering in this dimension.

_**But much to Minos’ and Ambar’s unawareness, someone else had listened to the call by eavesdropping from behind that door.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta-Reader: Ant0nius (FFN)
> 
> AN
> 
> A new chapter, the plot thickens and… there is a prequel planned.
> 
> 'One about some abs-'
> 
> And about friendship, love and-
> 
> 'ABS!'
> 
> Yes, there will be Abs!
> 
> 'Yes!'
> 
> Still, this story needs to wrap up and… we have 13 more chapters before the end of it all. The bet are open about what is going to happen now-
> 
> 'Either Crests’ intervention or my daughter’s decide to thread carefully on this situation.'
> 
> Both are chaotic, but only one is the correct answer!


	18. What makes a Family

**Chapter 18: What makes a Family**

**~Alej’s POV~**

She had initially regretted accepting Diana’s offer to come and visit earlier than last time.

With her mind being a bit sluggish after waking up early in the morning, she had quite the difficult time getting herself prepared for the visit.

Despite a few small sacrifices on her part to make her surrogate mother happy, Alejandra felt glad that she was now resting on one of the pleasant couches in the woman’s living room.

Tootsie seemed a little worse off than she was. With her body slumped quietly on the sofa nearby, the blonde had completely abandoned herself to some full rest after the tiring night the younger Prime had gone through.

With quiet snoring reaching out from the sleeping Mouse, the pleasant silence of the house was barely disturbed and… the Cow Prime mirthfully lost herself in memory lane while waiting for Randal to finish preparing some cups of coffees.

She could remember sitting on this very couch so many times in the past, either to read a book or to enjoy some happy time with the rest of the family.

Some of the memories warmed her up to how this simple rural life once was hers to enjoy to the fullest without having to suffer from any major problems.

Yet these fleeting moments were also coupled with a few moments when she wasn’t sure how to label them to herself.

A large majority were seen as a catalyst of her discomfort being Mora, or rather, her current perspective of her former childhood friend.

It was just as Alejandra had decided to venture out to Prism Uni to pursue higher education that the real division started to happen between the two of them.

While there had been some dissatisfaction prior to that, even about some silly high school crush, the real issue stemmed from two general issues she had with the woman she once considered a sister. Stubbornness and simplicity.

In her eyes, Mora was so stuck in seeking happiness with so little that she had forsaken the fact that freedom could be achieved beyond mere familial bonds, that friends were important too.

In fact, if there was something that Alej was unable to truly explain about their past school experiences, was how the young Linda had never kept the same friends around.

None had stuck around after a couple of months after she had befriended them.

And while her logical explanation at the time had been that the girl’s personality had messed up big time with many classmates, Diana had been the one to reveal quite the difficult truth to stomach.

It had been no secret to Alejandra that there were a few mean students at the local school. From elementary to late high school period, she had been subjected to an unfair degree of problems caused by some irritating children.

Some of them had been people that Mora would end up befriending early on and then prank them… badly.

Nothing too violent, there were plenty of possibilities for those to become bad, but it never went as far as to actively hurt people.

Yet what truly got Alej to stop and think back at the scene was how it all made sense with how Mora had cared for her.

It was like they were sisters, where the fellow Cow Prime would strive to make sure that she was fine and well away from any of the bullies.

This very thought kept hanging over her head for years, preventing her from giving a genuine understanding of the young woman…

Or at least that was until she had run away from home.

Before Alejandra could have dived back in that topic, her attention was taken back to reality as both Randal and Diana appeared out of the kitchen while holding the five cups filled with steamy coffee.

The very moment the cups were put by the table in front of the couches, Tootsie seemed to shift from her slumber. Her violet eyes snapped open as she quickly scanned the room, slowly recollecting the last moments before falling asleep and… then she settled on Alej’s blue orbs.

An embarrassed blush ultimately settled as she finally got a full understanding of what was going on and where she had left off. The Mouse Prime moved quickly, adjusting herself on the sofa in a proper sitting composure before giving a quick nod to her boss.

Diana giggled at the scene, while Randy looked partly confused by that development.

“You know, Alej,” The older woman mused quietly. “You could give the little dear some mercy considering that this is still a visit of courtesy.”

She could do that, especially since they were there as ‘friends’ rather than ‘leader and subordinate’ as the young Cow Prime was accustomed to. In fact, she didn’t even chide out the little situation that had been a thing up until now, knowing full well how draining yesterday had been for the blonde.

Not only did the Mouse Prime have to conclude some paperwork Alejandra had assigned to her, but she also had to go through a thorough check of the machines before going to sleep… which had been around midnight.

“I suppose I can ease up on her for today,” The dark-white-haired woman conceded with a sigh. The words seemed to draw a giddy smile out of the blonde, but this was diluted by the fact that Alejandra decided to move her attention right at a detail she had noticed when the mother and son had returned from the kitchen.

“Is Matt going to join us now?” Alej inquired calmly right at Diana. “I thought he was still working out in the fields.”

The older woman nodded, a small smile growing. “I think it will be alright if for this occasion he skipped his work.”

“But would it be convenient to-”

“My farm, my rules,” The fellow Cow Prime interjected with a hum. “Plus, it wouldn’t be nice if he was working while you two are here.”

Randal nodded. “I will be going to call him. We should be back in a couple of minutes.”

The Collie Prime smiled a little before going by the entrance and running towards the human was quietly working on his own.

It was still surprising how someone as young as Matt was having an easy time braving through the numerous hardships of keeping such a traditional farm from collapsing as a workplace. To think that someone could just get his mind focused on the job and… go forward this determinedly.

It was familiar to Alejandra, reminding her of how she had started _everything_. From the first efforts in trying to become the CEO of an already-existing company, to creating a new one from just herself and Tootsie.

“You know, I didn’t notice this before but…” Diana spoke quietly, her voice drawing the younger woman back away from her thoughts. “Have you been sleeping well recently?”

Oh right, the sleep bags. After hours of dealing with an increasing amount of paperwork, her body was having some trouble keeping up with the rhythm and… it was just a temporary instance.

Once the company managed to expand properly, she would just hire new people to further decentralize the burden of her growing organization.

“I will catch a full day of rest tomorrow,” The Cow Prime replied with certainty. “I will stay in bed more than usual, maybe three or four more hours.”

“That’s good to know, but if you want to rest here, you should know that it will be fine by me and-” Diana sighed quietly and nodded to herself. “I really hope you aren’t just driving yourself too deep in your work like Matt is doing.”

Blue eyes widened at that comment. So the human was actually having some trouble keeping up with the burden? It wasn’t much of a surprise, but what truly made this quite impressive was how long he had been going at it without showing any signs of fatigue.

Farm-work was nothing easy, especially with how tiring the situation would be for a lone man to go through so many roles at once to keep things running smoothly.

Maybe there was more than a simple connection between these two facts.

“That’s why I think that it will do him fine if he spent some time away from labor and with us,” The Cow Prime continued happily. “It will do him well if he rested a little while instead of burning himself up like this.”

“I suppose that could be acceptable, considering how much sacrifices he’s made for the farm,” Alej conceded again, this time feeling that this was more appropriate for the young man.

“It would be a good thing to do,” Tootsie agreed happily. “Plus, he would end up missing these delicious cookies if he continued working.”

Another round of giggle ensued, lessening the seriousness of the situation.

“Oh why, aren’t you the sweet flatterer~.”

The Mouse Prime blushed brightly at that comeback, her jaws dropping low at the words. It was the first time the young Cow Prime saw her subordinate be this flustered by a comment… but considering whom Diana was and how much of a teaser she was, there was no reason to find any issues about it.

In fact, Alejandra let out a calm sigh, glancing with minor irritation at the now-smiling woman as she knew that this was just the beginning of some embarrassing escalation.

“Weren’t you the one mentioning mercy?” She inquired carefully, hoping to keep at bay the crescendo of teasing from continuing after this.

“Uh? But teasing is something that should always be used to get the funniest of reactions,” Diana replied eagerly. “In fact, I think it’s been a while since I’ve last asked you about your current romantic situation. Any individuals you wish to introduce to me~?”

Now it was her calm to be shattered by the power of the experienced teaser, drawing a full-face blush on her face. This wasn’t the first time this had happened, but it’s been so long since she had to deal with this that she was caught off-guard by this response.

“I-I’m n-not-” She stuttered a little, unable to properly think for a moment while Diana graced them with more chuckling over these reactions.

“You both are so adorable,” The older Cow Prime mused happily. “But I really do want to know if there had been any improvement on that front, young lady.”

Alejandra squirmed a little at the pressure, gulping nervously over the fact that it’s been more than a couple of months since she had tried out dating people.

“N-Not really - Work is quite draining and-”

“Ms. Alejandra is very active to make sure everything is fine at the company,” Tootsie surprisingly piped in with a calmer tone. “S-She works really hard to keep everything afloat.”

“Is that so?” The motherly woman poked a little more while narrowing her at the young Prime, getting her uneasy once again but…

Then she eased up and nodded. “I suppose that’s something a good leader does. Make sure things are fine and well for their subordinates.”

Relief washed instantly over the two of them as the disaster had been averted and now that the first wave of probing queries was over-

“But what about you, Tootsie?” Diana inquired once again. “Do you have someone in your mind right now?”

The next one came crashing down restlessly.

“I-I’ve been busy myself,” The blonde tried to deflect, only to rouse even more the interest presented by the older woman.

“Work has to be tough to get the two of you stuck like this… maybe I should do something to-”

“No,” Alejandra jumped in with a panicked note, then she quickly realized what she had blurted out and tensed up again. “I mean- there is no need for you to do anything about… that.”

Green eyes showed faux naivety at that comment, but the older Prime huffed as a pout settled on her face.

“You know, I don’t understand why neither you, nor Randy are willing to tell me about any recent relationships you might have developed,” The old woman whined in irritation. “At least Matt got close to get a lovely one.”

At this the younger Cow Prime frowned. “He found someone here in town?”

“Oh, from what I remember hearing from Matt, she reached town a little while after you had left,” Diana started to explain. “She works at the local bar as a waitress and… nothing much happened from it.”

There was something in that ‘nothing much’ that just left Alejandra as perplexed as suspicious. The tone used, the hint of embarrassment, and that certain glint of mischievousness in her surrogate mother’s eyes giving her proof of that.

“Nothing much?” She inquired calmly. “That seems fairly vague, considering he ‘came close’ to have a relationship.”

“They had a date,” Diana admitted with a hum. “But things didn’t develop towards that direction after a ‘certain point’.”

A blush emerged once more on her cheeks, forcing Alej to keep quiet to think well about what she had just heard. There was so much context missing from those words and… she wasn’t referring to that. Or was she?

“Was it the girl that decided to keep things simple?” Tootsie pressed on despite how embarrassing the topic was much to her boss’ confusion over it. “I mean, I don’t want to sound too harsh on Matt, he is a good guy and all, but he is still a human-”

“Oh no, you are… you are missing the point by a long shot,” The old Cow Prime admitted with some amusement. “In fact, that night went well beyond anyone’s expectations.”

Now, wasn’t that just… odd? She didn’t have any reason to doubt the words from Diana, but she found it difficult that a human just had the ‘stamina’ to go through with that situation. But considering how determinedly he was going through the tasks at the farm, it wouldn’t be much of an absurd idea to see this more as a strange predicament.

“But what happened then?” The blonde continued with her inquiries, and the older Prime was happy to reply to all her questions.

“The two just decided that it wasn’t meant to be, ending up remaining just friends.”

“That’s quite… sad,” The Mouse Prime concluded with a huff.

“A pity for sure… but perhaps I will have some stories from Mora,” The woman pointed out quietly as she thought about this, ignoring that her words had brought sudden tension right to Alejandra.

Blue eyes went wide open as the younger Cow Prime stared in confusion at the brunette, shock seeping in her expression as she blurted out the first question she had in mind.

“W-What?”

“Oh right, I should have told you these earlier than now,” Diana apologized quickly as she answered thousands of silent questions at once. “But Matt has managed to get in contact with Mora and… he managed to convince her to return back home.”

…

WHAT?!

“Forgive me for asking this, but isn’t Mora the daughter that ran away from home?” Tootsie asked politely and minding her wording to not sound too insensitive and the older woman nodded.

“That is correct. And now she is returning home so-”

“We are back,” Randal interrupted with a small grin. “Matt was quite far from where I had last seen him. He is changing his clothes since they got dirty while working-”

Before anyone could have said anything about this, Alejandra stood up from her seat, silently walking around Randy, and deep in the hallway.

Her blue eyes tried locating where the human was as fast as possible, her mind demanding answers from the source of this development.

Mora was coming back. How? How did he manage to convince her to come back? What did he tell her?

And the list went further and further… but her priority was all the same.

Finally, she found the place she was looking for and, slamming her it open, her lips parted to initiate what was meant to be a lengthy discussion about Mora. 

…

_**But it actually ended up in a silent standoff since, much to her surprise and immense mortification, the young man had been in the process of removing his pants, his chest already naked and in display… with his incredible abs.** _

\----------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d--------

**~Matt’s POV~**

Things continued being awkward for some time. For good reasons.

Despite the fact I was allowed to put on my shirt and I wasn’t dealing with any screaming, the fact that we were sitting on Randy’s bed right now, staring silently at the floor as barely nothing left from our mouths, was more concerning than anything else that could have happened out of that scene.

“I’m sorry,” Alejandra blurted out again, her face still lost in a bright blush while I frowned quietly at the wooden texture of the ground.

“And I’ve forgiven you already,” I repeated back to her, making this the… fifteenth? Fifteenth time I had to accept her apology.

Sighing at how irritating this silence was starting to become, I glanced to the side and hummed. “So, are you going to tell me why you barged in or is that embarrassing too?”

Her face displayed some activity compared to the previous panicked expression she had, yet Alej took a couple more seconds to properly ponder over my words before actually giving a better reaction over those.

“D-Diana told me that… you called Mora,” She began with a tense voice. “And- and that she accepted to return back home.”

The Cow Prime didn’t continue from this, but I started to connect the dots between her unexpected entry, her current behavior, and Mora. It was quite simple actually, but there were some details I knew that needed some attention considering the context and the individual I was talking to.

So I eased up a little on my composure, and glanced at the ceiling.

“What do you want to know?” I finally asked with a calm tone, drawing a surprised look out of the young woman.

There was no reason for me to deny her the chance to know more about the situation, but I was fairly sure that I had told everything to Diana already and-

God please, don’t tell me that she literally rushed to me to have more information despite the fact she would have had it all… _without having to literally crash in the room so suddenly!_

“Are you sure that’s… fine?” Alejandra politely asked with a mix of surprise and confusion in her voice.

I shrugged at her. “At this point, I guess we could talk about it.”

She gave a nod but she took some time before shooting right away. A couple more seconds passed and soon the inquiry began.

“Was Randal the one that gave you the phone number?”

“I promised him that I would try and reach her out,” I replied quietly. “He gave me the number and I did my best with the conversation that ensued.”

“You succeeded,” The Cow Prime dryly pointed out and I huffed at her.

“Yeah, but that wasn’t an easy thing to do, that is considering that other people, her family,” I glanced once again at her. “And I think you too, failed to get her to return back home.”

Alejandra sighed tiredly. “She is just too stubborn to listen to anything if she has a grudge on people… or if she is wrong about something and she doesn’t want to hear someone call her out as such.”

“Nah,” I disagreed quietly. “Sure, I noticed that she was quite stubborn about some stuff, and she almost closed the call the moment I didn’t tell her what was truly going on, but I think Mora is just dealing with her own batch of problems.”

The young woman frowned at my words, but didn’t immediately reject my comment.

“What made you think this?”

“During the call she sounded incredibly tense,” I revealed while thinking back about that conversation. “The kind of tension people generally have when they feel rightfully paranoid about something. But I don’t think it was her being worried about dealing with this situation.”

“Like as if… she was in trouble or something?” Alej’s voice showed some concern. “Do you think that there was something wrong about her words or-”

“I think it was something connected to the recent past,” I interrupted her, knowing that fueling unnecessary worries was going to be detrimental at best. “I don’t think she is in trouble right now.”

My response seemed to calm her down a little bit, but we were far from over this discussion and I prepared for the next questions.

“So, did you tell her about what is going on with Diana?” She finally asked and I sighed.

“I did,” I answered curtly, ignoring her chiding look. “It was the only way to get her attention, she was literally close to ending the call a few seconds in. Cutting me off at every sentence … eventually caused me to snap at her.”

Her chiding look intensified and I gulped nervously.

“I just told her the truth, without sounding too harsh about it-”

“How far did you go with it?” Alejandra interjected cooly, and I hummed quietly.

“I told her that it would’ve been the least she could have done to Diana,” I genuinely admitted, flinching a little at her dark frown. “But I was quick to point out that I knew that she actually cared, and that she would have made the right choice.”

…

“How did she react to this?” She pressed on, knowing what answer she was expecting and-

“She was shocked, mortified even… and I think she cried -!” As I explained to her, Alej punched my arm, the strength put behind it making it sting. “Okay, quick thing, I didn’t press on when I heard her cry, I made sure to comfort her through it.”

“You still could have been a little more respectful about that,” The Cow Prime commented with a sigh. “Telling someone about this kind of news, that she is going to lose her mother it’s-”

She stopped there, she didn’t continue and… she sighed.

“I’m sor-”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” I interrupted the young woman. “Since I’ve experienced that, I should’ve known how to actually tell her that without being too brash about it.”

I bowed my head in shame, my eyes were now looking back at the floor while I thought about this and… that was something that I hadn’t thought about. Despite having lost both of my parents, I had never been in the position to give the bad news to someone.

I never thought it to be even a possibility, especially with how dreadful that predicament was in itself . It had been the spur of the moment that had gotten me to give out that bad part of me.

It was instinctual, a reminder of how many regretful things could turn if proper focus wasn’t given to these circumstances.

I remember the anger directed at myself for having done nothing to make their passing meaningful in my mind. It was all bleak, their death felt without reason, and I was lost in the echo for a couple of years.

It had been like the light that had guided me forward in life had started to flicker violently and madly, giving me little sight over where I was going and what I was doing. And then I started to pick up my own pieces when I felt that things were starting to get out of control.

“That… isn’t true,” Alejandra’s voice brought me out of that thought and right into the conversation. “Losing a parent doesn’t make people capable of sensibly dealing with people close to losing theirs. Sure, it does prepare you to know how to offer support, but sometimes, the memory is just...”

“Too much,” I concluded for her. “You know of that pain too.”

It wasn’t a question, the fact coming directly from Diana’s own tales of ‘little Alej’. But instead of lingering in my mind, I kept my attention right at her as she let out a drained sigh.

“My father passed away when I was close to completing high school,” The young woman said while nodding. “He was always busy with his company, the passing of my mother leaving him in a state of melancholic dissatisfaction with people.”

The Cow Prime blinked and then gave a small smile. “Diana had been one of my mother’s closest friends, and she offered me a place to eat, rest, and have comfort in the form of Mora and Randy offering me their attention and company.”

She paused, before sighing in sadness.

“Dad tried his best to be present during important events, giving me his support and love whenever he could and… then he was gone.”

…

“The fact you still remember him makes him live even now,” I slowly commented, trying to ease up the situation. “He cared for you, and he will still do as long as you remember him with a smile.”

She did comply, a tiny smile appearing on her face at that. “Thank you.”

“Only saying the truth, Little Alej,” I replied happily, getting a snort and a playful punch back.

“I refuse to be called ‘little’ by someone that is younger than me,” The young woman huffed, shaking her head.

“Wait,” I frowned at this. “I’m younger than you? I thought you, Mora and I were all the same age.”

“Mora is three months my senior and you are two months my junior,” Alejandra explained calmly. “That makes you the youngest.”

I groaned, feeling like I’ve stepped on a land mine… connected to the rest of the explosives in that very minefield.

“I’m already dealing with this with Randal, I can’t cope up if any of you decides to-”

“I wouldn’t do anything but be correct with you as your senior,” The young woman pointed out with a serious voice. “But I will, of course, have to tease you because of my ‘senior status’.”

Another groan, but this time it was followed by some chuckles I shared with the Cow Prime.

I sighed and nodded. “So, you had a brother and a sister back in your childhood,” I mirthfully started about it. “I suppose that makes Diana your mother?”

The young woman was silent for a while but she eventually gave a slow nod.

“I wouldn’t tell her this for… I actually don’t know,” Alejandra admitted nervously. “I feel like it would be intruding on their amily. Their real family.”

“You wouldn’t, as I know they consider you part of it,” I replied to her with a confident smile. “I swear that if you started to call Diana ‘mom, she would be the happiest to call you ‘daughter’.”

She lowered her sight to the floor and nodded again. “I suppose she would.”

Knowing Diana, she wouldn’t merely be ‘the happiest’.

God knows what kind of stuff she would do once this is formalized. Most likely, she would try her best to get a ‘proper family picture’ done first, then perhaps arrange for more ambitious stuff.

With the fact that she had some ‘mysterious friend’ that had somehow managed to get hands over my childhood photos, I was confident that things would have escalated instantly the moment this happened.

But the joy the old woman would feel about this made all the dreadful drawbacks instantly disappear.

“Like seriously, why not give it a try now?” I pressed on. “Is there a reason to not really try?”

There was visible reluctance, enough to draw these quiet moments for a while so that the woman could have a proper response to this.

“Not truly, no,” The Cow Prime replied. “But what about Tootsie?”

I blinked at this question, feeling confused about this. “…What about her?”

“She is still a subordinate under me,” She explained. “And I don’t know if it would be correct for me to-”

Did I fail to notice Tootsie being like this? I was quite sure the blonde was quite the farthest thing from a strict worker under her leadership, in fact I knew that she would probably feel happy for her boss if this situation was truly dealt with.

“Do you think Tootsie would think bad of you if you called someone that cared for you for a large part of your childhood ‘mom’?”

The question itself felt stupid to even ask, and the blush that enveloped her face proved that her own resistance was silly to try and bring up in this situation.

“How about we go back to the living room and you try?” I asked quietly and I saw her nod.

Just as we both stood up, I noticed that I had yet to change my dirty clothes… and we’ve been sitting on Randal’s bed for a long time now.

Hopefully, the Collie will not overreact about it- or maybe he will have me clean the entire bed as a punishment.

Still, I paused for a moment. “Actually, I should change my clothes and… if you want you can go there yourself and wait for-”

I stopped, my eyes narrowing at the uneasy look on the young woman, as if it was trying to protest about this and I frowned. “You don’t want to go back alone?”

It was odd for her to ask for something like this, and I saw this more as a wild guess _that ended up being validated as she gave a proper nod at it._

I sighed and shrugged. “Can you at least stay out of the room and offer me some privacy?”

“I-I can do that,” At my question, she quietly reached the door and left the room, literally leaving me alone so that I could have started with that long-needed process.

Once I was done with getting a cleaner set of clothes, I proceeded to walk towards the entrance, returning to the living room with Alejandra and…

Then we were subjected to quite the interrogation from Diana about why it took us so long to return back there.

_**Truly an interesting day, between amusing insanity and new revelations.** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN
> 
> You still have to explain me where you have been recently.
> 
> 'Uh? What do you mean?'
> 
> You usually come around to try and get me to write chapters earlier than planned, either that or pipe in with some of the other stories. What did you do?
> 
> 'Me? Why would I be doing anything- Okay, I might have been busy with some fun stuff.'
> 
> '*Reaches out and hands out a ticket*'
> 
> ...What kind of odd... stuff? Is that a-
> 
> 'You are thereby invited to Paraiso Island-'
> 
> No.
> 
> 'But-'
> 
> I know what happened a couple of years ago. I ain't going there.
> 
> 'Eh, what about this summer? Without tricks and all of that?'
> 
> I will want more guarantees, but I will think about it.
> 
> 'Then I can start preparing things with Messiah-'
> 
> No tricks.
> 
> 'No... tricks~... hehehehe.'


	19. The Weight of Memories

**Chapter 19: The Weight of Memories**

**~Minos’ POV~**

If there was something that Minos was incredibly quick to dislike, it was the unpredictability of fate.

Sometimes it’s good to be subjected to surprises, at least when they are amusing and positive to receive, but it would be a lie for him to say that he wouldn’t be feeling some degree of annoyance and discomfort in all these odd circumstances.

It was instinctive, for his need to keep a sharp guard over himself when people around him had never truly settled down, even with the end of the war.

He was attentive about those he barely knew about despite their overall genuine friendliness, but, most of all, also afraid of the eventuality of making new mistakes in these new settings away from the battlefield.

Painting helped to reduce the stressing memories from flaring up so suddenly, and so did some basic training that gave him the means to keep up with a proper shape.

Yet the sensation of having to always keep up his guard around people had recently resurfaced when he had made a discovery a little less than two days earlier.

He still had some fresh memories of the last couple of years of the war, the ones that saw the most absurd turn of tides the empire could have imagined when a newcomer had appeared and… shattered the expectations of a quick victory.

The subtle but determined nature of someone he had defined a foolish bug before the imperial might, someone so little and weak that shouldn’t have had managed to make so much damage in that limited amount of time.

Yet he did it, the Grand Knight had been able to score victories after victories by facing all the obstacles Minos himself had been responsible to put between his group and Earth.

He could remember surprise, anger and frustration beyond the thinkable as the Bull Prime had tried his best to subvert one of the latest threats to the Emperor, yet they all culminated with failures.

No soldiers, no space pirates, and not even imperial guards had managed to break the stubborn resilience displayed and…

And not even his personal involvement had mattered.

But these musings didn’t come to him without reasoning. In fact, it was all connected to the current activity that had taken him away from his simple plans for the morning.

Humming quietly while putting down the last few color-filled cans right with the rest, Minos took a moment to blink up at the small rundown building that Miles had required some help to restore.

The place was quite ruined by years of mismanagement, the Cat Prime having long explained that the lack of certain owners up until now had seen the entire structure left untouched for several decades now.

The young man had appeared fairly nervous when he had started to explain this situation to both the human and the Bull Prime while they were all staying at the bar.

He profusely mentioned more than once how he wasn’t trying to exploit his friendship with them, but that he really needed some help in fixing his current home considering the long list of activities the process required to be completed.

They both accepted after hearing some more of the current situation, drawing some prospects of tiring sessions of getting the place fixed for good.

Nothing overly excessive, just that it needed to have its water network and heating systems properly adjusted to make it a properly inhabitable house.

The work started pretty quickly by the time they had all the resources and tools ready to be used. Minos took care of repainting the external walls, while Matt started to give a look over the heating system and see what could be already fixed.

Surprisingly enough, the Bull Prime was irritated by the fact that he had been given such a ‘simple task’, but perhaps the division of duties had come more from the fact he himself wasn’t much experienced with certain kinds of devices.

In fact, he never had any reasons to actually deal with the repairing process required for anything connected to heat-production.

Still, Minos decided to not protest over the matter, as he found the logic solid and acceptable within his mind… while also finding the reason to stay away from Matt a good motivation to finally reduce the flashbacks connected to their first encounter.

His irritation back then had been immense. His chest had burned a curious anger when he found himself finally lifting up by the neck the reason for the troubles he had been facing with the Emperor regarding his first and last failures.

The human, at the time younger and quite rude with his diplomatic approaches, had been lashing out at his arms, trying to effortlessly claw himself out of his tight hold as the Prime had started to squeeze painfully at his head.

That very memory would then twist to the way he was ultimately defeated, when Minos’ final delusion shattered before the honesty of his opponent’s goodness. The sword aimed at the throat, his Crest temporarily disabled and… an unconquerable might hiding behind the steely eyes of the Grand Knight.

The difference between the two instances?

Mercy.

Where the Bull Prime wouldn’t have spared any to his enemies, the human that he had hunted for so long before becoming one of his companions had actually offered him peace of mind and soul.

A redemption that he shouldn’t have gotten so easily, not with how much innocent blood had stained his hands because of his heinous crimes against both primekind and humanity.

Yet it had happened and now… he was grateful.

He was angry at his old ways, spiteful of how his devotion to such a flawed cause had led him to make so many terrible mistakes… but now Minos was happily enjoying true peace, away from ever being subjected to a position of power. 

There had been circumstances after the disappearance of the Grand Knight that saw the Bull Prime actually pursue some positive activities to fix his mistakes, starting by the important task of finding the other cells of Primes that had scattered across the galaxy after the destruction of Prism.

There had been so many hopes back then while he had tried to at least make sure that everyone was brought back to the fold now that the empire had collapsed… yet his expectations turned out dull and unfounded when nothing was found after months spent search across the solar system.

In the end he had to concede that Ambar’s orders to conclude the search had been the best option to take, especially with the unexpected development of the newly-crowned Queen to refuse taking court in Neo-Earth.

The shocking detail for many had actually been something that Minos had found logical, especially with how distraught the young lady had been at the end of the conflict.

The ‘simple grieving phase’ that the Crest of Wisdom had so considered temporary for the true monarch had eventually taken a more permanent note in history as she was forced to assume control as the High Prime to avoid the full collapse of the newborn government.

The Queen had retreated to self-isolation, accepting just a handful of visitors once in a while in her royal-owned section of the grand palace in Prism City.

And despite the fact that centuries had passed since the conclusion of the war, the young woman was still driven by sorrow to avoid making a public appearance to her people, to her subjects.

To a younger Minos, this would have been proof of a weak and unworthy ruler for an entire sentient race, someone that was brought to a position of power without having proved their worth.

But the Queen did prove her integrity and determination to save her own people, abandoning the early reluctance of being bestowed with the role so young and so suddenly.

In his mind by now there was no reason to doubt her worth, her capacity to rule properly and justly so, but the issue wasn’t about being able to do something… it was about being willing to commit to such a grand burden while also living with the costs of the victory.

The Bull Prime had thought well about Ambar’s words of keeping quiet, finding the Gods’ will to be so much of a hindrance considering the fact that the worst had been gone for so long now.

There was no Emperor, the Narakhans-led resistance was quite feeble at best and many just weren’t as fanatics as they used to be and… the Crests were all well-integrated within modern society.

Everyone had found a reason to go forward with their lives, and Minos was more than sure that it was no longer about some serious threats.

But what could’ve driven the deities that had so favored Primekind to remove and then return the Grand Knight for so many centuries? Why?

It would have been his wish to remain and see the fruits of his labor, to see the beginning of the peacetime and assist for the best the inexperienced monarch that he had known for so long.

...And yet it didn’t happen.

The Grand Kni- _Matt_ was now unaware of the weight his figure still held within many old circles, how his presence had shaped the end of a millenia-long warfare, his mind missing many of his past memories and limiting his knowledge to just a fraction of what it once had.

The Grand Journal, the ‘little’ notebook that had turned out to be a thousand-pages book with essential information over the solar system’s planets, had been extremely useful to create a proper understanding of Space back when the early steps of the ‘Search’ had started.

It was the only relic surviving the disappearance of the ‘legendary figure’, someone that history saw more as a mythical being rather than a real person.

And yet they were all wrong to think so, in fact… Minos was now staring at the ‘legend’ himself.

The human took a sigh as he took out the slightly-burned gloves off from his hands.

“This is the last time I try to fix something so rusty without a manual,” The young man huffed tiredly before looking up at the Prime. “Is everything alright, Minos?”

“Yes,” He stated with a nod, looking at the wall he had unconsciously painted in a simple white, the large brush used to properly conclude the task still dripping some of the liquid color. “I’m moving on to the next wall and… are you done with your own situation?”

Matt nodded happily, showing a tired look for a moment. “Yep, the Heating system should be working well now. I had to double-check to make sure that it wouldn’t malfunction on a false start.”

“Good to know,” The Prime commented politely, his lips twitching in the ghost of a smile before looking at the next wall. “Can you keep me company then? I have some questions I would like to ask you.”

It was curiosity driving him now, but the sense of worry was working well to hinder the chances of messing up this attempt to probe a little at the amnesiac young man.

“Sure thing,” The human agreed quietly, showing no worry about this sudden request as he decided to follow the Bull around.

The brush dipped back once more at the open can, white staining the bristles as he started to carefully press it by the strong texture of the barrier while still giving attention to his new spectator.

With Miles gone to try and find for the plans of the water network connected to his home by the city hall, there were only the two of them working around in that place for that very moment.

This was a golden opportunity to test the waters for some personal efforts to bring back some memories.

“I remember you mentioning that Ms. Linda’s daughter will soon return home,” The Prime started with a simple topic, unwilling to sound too blunt with his attempt as he knew that exaggeration was something that at worst fitted with the current case. “Anything you can comment about her?”

He needed to take a slow but steady pace to get some success out of this.

Matt blinked at the subject, but he didn’t seem anywhere close to unwilling to provide some information over this matter.

“I think she is nice, but she also seemed angry at herself and the world around her,” The young man replied with a serious tone. “I expect her to be rough to deal early on, distrustful even and… I might have snapped a little at her when I first called her.”

Red eyes blinked away from the wall and back to the human. “You ‘snapped’ at her?”

“It’s bad, I know that and… I got bashed well enough to know I could have been a little less oppressive back then,” He tensed up a little while replying, sounding quite nervous over it. “But I plan to apologize to her, perhaps later today once I’m done with my shift.”

“Still, that sounds like there is some story to it,” Minos pressed on with some curiosity within his words. “You usually are moderate with everyone.”

“I was driven to a brief state of irritation when she sounded so dismissive despite the fact I had some very serious information she had to know,” The human admitted quite quickly. “I mean, I can understand having to deal with some tough life choices and all- but I just couldn’t lose the chance of informing her of something I knew well enough that she needed to know.”

“Did you see yourself in that kind of response?” The Bull Prime suggested quietly, his tone turning cautious as to not sound insensible over the delicate topic he was grazing with this slight detour.

…

“Did I go too far or-”

“No.” The solid negation interrupted the Crest. “The only thing I can relate with Mora now is that she might feel terrible since she knows her mother might die pretty soon. It’s just the kind of 180 that nobody should ever want to experience in their lives, the one that brings you from reluctant isolation to outright worry in a span of a second.”

The Prime nodded at that. “I can only guess that it would sound quite hurtful if provided so bluntly.”

Matt flinched a little, but didn’t continue at that and… Minos decided to finally move the discussion into his real subject of interest.

“You know, I’ve heard of something similar happening a couple of centuries ago,” The Bull Prime started to explain, his tone of voice turning quieter and his curiosity drowned by mindful attention over his next words. “About two strange individuals that had both lost their parents at the same time. The reasons were different but… both hated each other for these tragic developments.”

The odd scene displayed by Minos caused the human to frown at that comment, his eyes narrowing in confusion at the words.

“Wait, why would they hate each other for that? Did their parents die in a battle or maybe-”

“The circumstances nowadays are not well known, but their hatred was quite… intense early on,” The Crest continued. “In fact, it came to a strange and absurd novelty when they ended up teaming up against a common enemy, someone that was actively trying to kill one of them for the sake of the… greater good.”

“Well, perhaps they were both good guys and so they just allied-”

“They were a boy and a girl,” Minos corrected while pressing on and ignoring the comments coming from Matt. “Both were meant to fight together, but they didn’t trust each other for several reasons… but still, they ended up siding together against the greatest of evils.”

“I don’t want to sound insensible there but… how does that make for a good fairy tale, Minos?” The human rebutted with even more confusion dripping from his voice. “I mean, this does sound like a good premise but-”

“It’s the first part of a bigger part of modern history,” The Prime interrupted again, this time a small smile settling on his face. “In fact, it could be defined as the very reason that saw the end of the Grand War.”

There was some silence there, with Matt pondering over this detail for some time and then… he sighed.

“Wait, you are going to tell me that there are other important people that were responsible for the downfall of the Emperor? I’ve always thought it was just the Crests that-”

“While the Crests were the main elements that shattered the true power of the Emperor, there was a leadership that supervised them in the last years of the war,” Minos interjected one last time. “In fact, the girl herself was- _is_ the current Queen of Prism.”

He blinked in surprise, but his eyes still sported some confusion. “What about… the other guy?”

“He was considered her protector and closest confidant. He was a kind man with good notions of life that sadly was lost after the war,” The Bull Prime answered with a hint of seriousness. “Someone that is now remembered as… the Grand Knight.”

…

Red eyes tried to gauge a proper reaction out of the young man, attentive for any change of expression or even the smallest detail that could hint to some realization.

But the sign was actually easier to spot on that he had expected as, instead of nodding off this new bit of knowledge, Matt actually _flinched_ , with his posture tensing up a little at the conclusive bit of his reply.

“T-That’s quite interesting alright and-”

“Do you know what’s the queen’s name, Matt?”

…

“Her name was-” Minos paused for a moment, his stare noticing the human’s lips already mouthing something similar to the name he was just mentioning… but littler, reduced. A nickname.

“Adela-!!”

Just as he offered the proper name, his eyes went wide in panic as he saw Matt’s body tense up suddenly before starting to fall backward.

Ditching the brush and the can, Minos’ rushed to catch the young man before he fell to the floor, quickly noticing how tense and shivering his body was.

The skin had gone pale white, his eyes seemed unfocused and unable to keep looking at the Prime, while the most notable element in that panic-worthy scene was the trail of blood leaving through one of his nostrils.

“Matt, don’t- I didn’t mean to-”

Was this what Ambar had meant with never mentioning to the human anything too ‘powerful’ about his past? He hadn’t expected such a strong reaction and… his worry tripled when he tried to bring him inside the currently empty household.

Pacing quickly inside the building and towards where the mini-fridge was located, Minos swiftly took the half-empty bottle of water sitting there.

Reaching from the sugar in one of the cupboards, he added both liquid and sweet substance to a small glass, not even bothering to wait to have it mixed properly before giving it to the human.

Matt sipped slowly, his attention span having dropped drastically but he looked capable enough to drink some sugared water.

Moments of silence ensued, with the human’s breathing coming to a calmer pace after a painstakingly slow recovery.

Gulping down the rest of the content within the glass, the young man coughed briefly as he regained control over his footing.

More silence, this time the concern started to dwindle away as Matt managed to stand up without the support offered by Minos.

“T-That was quite scary,” He admitted with a sigh, taking a step out of the Bull Prime’s arms as he tested his current balance while standing on his own. “I hope I didn’t frighten you too much with that little heart-attack.” 

The Prime blinked in surprise at the comment, confused by the fact the human thought that this situation was somehow connected to a simple biological issue.

That hadn’t been a heart-attack.

He shook his head, finally gaining some lucidity to think properly of the situation… before frowning.

“Actually, now that I think about it… were we talking about something important?” Matt inquired with a curious tone. “I can’t actually remember the topics but it was about-”

“Taffy,” Minos lied quickly, knowing now that it wasn’t wise to keep pressing over the past without dealing with that kind of worrying reaction. “I was teasing you about the fact that you still refused her despite the fact that-”

“She is a sweet girl, there is no denying it,” The human failed to notice that this wasn’t the truth, his mind possibly still unable to keep up with logical thoughts so complex to realize that. “But I just don’t see her like that. Plus, I bet she will get someone more trustworthy than me. I’m sure of it.”

The Bull Prime merely nodded, keeping his presence in the conversation minimal as he was still digesting what had just happened.

_**The Gods… what have they done to Matt?** _

\------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d--------------d-d-d-d--------------d-d-d-d----------

**~Mora’s POV~**

Her new hotel room was much better than the subpar places she had been forced to live in up until now and… she liked it now that she was out of that miserable situation.

Mora Linda had taken great attention in looking for any good flight plans to reach Gossamer the quickest possible, her eyes having seen way too many leaflets detailing the ‘best budget-saving flights’ she could take to get back home.

Her mind had been set to make a hasty return there in that little farm deep in that heavenly place that was her hometown for some time now.

Her childhood, her years as a teenager and… her first years as an adult.

She was ready to finally go back and face the music, to deal with her inner demons and perhaps have a much-needed talk with her mother.

Matt had sounded trustworthy, his tone feeling legitimate and his chastisement so much painful as truthful.

The Cow Prime had wasted too much time wandering around after finding out what happened to her father, and she couldn’t see herself wasting time even after her mother was truly gone.

To think that Diana Linda, that strong woman that brought her to this world, the lone parent that had seen for her growth together with Randal’s and Alej’s, was now going to die soon-

It was infuriating, but also dreadful to even consider so suddenly.

Mora was angry at herself, or rather at that part of herself that led her to stupidly ignore the fact that she had abandoned her only family for a reason and, once that objective had been fulfilled, she had still decided to ditch the need to make a return home.

Maybe it had been the shame of the horrible things she had to do to keep going, to survive, or perhaps the young woman had just found herself restrained by that silly pride of hers.

Pride can be a good thing to sport around, but that is until something as serious as what was happening at Las Lindas happened.

Moving quickly out of that little settlement located by the eastern regions of the United States, the Cow Prime had carefully made way to arrive in California as her main target was the major airport in Los Angeles.

With several means to reach the other coast of the nation being hindered by the terrible weather, her only hope was now catching a plane to reach DC and then up to Prism City.

It would take some time for her to accomplish this all, but she was just two days shy from making her first step to finally leave for home.

Mora was frustrated after having gone for two long days of barely getting some rest as she had been driven around by the need to quickly reach home.

Her determination had weakened a little when some sleep bags had formed right below her eyes, dignifying the fact she had gotten little sleep since she had heard from the remaining worker at the farm.

So instead of outright catching some immediate rest and going through her regular session of nightmares, the young woman had already started pondering over the ways she could go to waste some time without having to be drained by her sleep-deprived self.

Perhaps there were some good bars nearby, hopefully one that lacked any unwanted people she wanted to deal with right now.

Her musings were interrupted by the familiar vibration of her cellphone, the little device having been placed by the bedside just a couple of moments earlier.

Green eyes regarded the object with a mix of apprehension and uneasiness, part of her quickly shuddering at the realization of whom was currently calling her.

The number had been one that she had saved quickly after the end of the last call, her mind urging her to keep contact with the young man responsible for keeping up Las Lindas going right now so as to not confuse him with anyone else that could have called her.

Her hand carefully reaching for the phone, she sighed before bringing up to her ear and starting the call.

“Hello?”

“ **Hi Mora,** ” Matt replied with a quiet and tired tone. “ **I hope I’m not calling while you are busy or-** ”

“N-No- I mean- Everything is fine,” She replied in a brief bout of panic, messing up greatly with her reasoning to try and at least appear calm.

“ **Oh,** ” The man replied calmly at that. “ **Well, it’s good to know that and… I might have to give you a little notice. We’ve a spectator to this call.** ”

She tensed up a little at this, her worry increasing at the possibility that it could have been her mother.

Yet her concerns lessened at the following words coming from the other side of the call.

“ **And he’s here because I might have burned myself out during my shift,** ” Matt continued with a sigh. “ **I might have gone a little far today and… yeah, almost tripped on myself while making my way back to the house.** ”

Randal, she thought absently as her attention was diverted elsewhere, with her eyes widening a little at hearing about this development. “Are you alright? No injury or anything like that?”

“ **I’m fine. Mostly,** ” He admitted curtly, almost annoyed by the inquiries. “ **I had just a little brain fart, nothing to worry about-** ”

“ _**Except that you almost fell face first towards the metal fence.** _”

Mora flinched at that distant interjection, remembering that familiar voice as Randy’s.

“Tell Randal I say ‘Hi’,” The Cow Prime muttered quickly. “And how the hell does a ‘brain fart’ get you to crash into a metal fence?”

“ **Mora says ‘Hi’, you prick,** ” Matt shot back at the Collie, getting a snort from the young woman before he actually returned his attention back to the call. “ **And let’s just say that there were good reasons for brain farting that hard.** ”

“I’m quite sure that’s… not actually possible.”

“ **It is**.”

“What will you have for dinner then?” She continued that mirthful exchange, surprising the young man with that question.

“ **Uh... I think Randy had mentioned something like… chicken soup with some veggies?** ”

“Ha, that’s mom’s recipe to help when someone is actually sick,” The young woman replied with a victorious tone. “So, you are sick, what do you have?”

…

“ **Are you kidding me? Like, you predicted I’m sick from** -”

“If there is something that I know for sure is when mom can spot some serious cases,” Mora interjected smugly. “Still, you’ve to tell me what it is.”

“ **Let’s just say that I had a moment of weakness a couple of hours ago and, in my immense wisdom and intelligence, I might have decided to still go through with my shift.** ”

“ _**Maybe you meant ‘in your immense idiocy’.** _” The Collie’s comment arrived on the device.

“Did Randal get sassier than I last saw him?” The Cow Prime found herself asking to the other side of the call.

“ **I think it might be the case and… anyway, I think we should move to the real reason why I’ve called you.** ”

“Anything you’ve forgotten to say last time?” Mora inquired with a serious voice, praying for it to not be the case as the situation was already grim as it was.

“ **No- or better, not truly about the situation here but more about the call itself,** ” The man admitted with a sigh. “ **Look, I might have sound a tad bit too harsh on some part of our conversation back then and I feel like I need to apologize about being far too stern here and there-** ”

“What are you talking about?” The young woman asked with a confused tone. “I thought you said that mom is-”

“ **That is still true, but the issue is that I was too forceful while giving it and too chiding in what followed after that and… I wish for you to know that-** ”

“No, stop it,” The Cow Prime interrupted swiftly, getting irritated by this development. “Look, Matt, I don’t care what you might’ve thought about my reaction about that but… I needed that wake up, and whoever told you that I needed some apologies is a moron to think so little about me-”

“ **I mean, Alej did say that you would’ve appreciated that I-** ”

“Wait, Patches told you that?” Now, that was something that got the young woman’s attention for good. “You mean to tell me that you know her and… that she has come to visit the farm?”

“ **Twice now,** ” Matt admitted quickly and without hesitation, ignoring the little tension within her voice. “ **She had been trying to approach Diana again. They both seemed to be going for great strides about it.** ”

“And she is only reconnecting emotionally, nothing else?”

While she once knew the bespectacled girl in the past, Mora was also wary of the fact that Alej had dreamed of buying the farm from Diana so that she could improve it.

And that dream hadn’t changed at all compared to many of her more childish details.

“ **Seems so to me. I did have a private conversation with her and… she seemed quite genuine about that,** ” The young man replied calmly. “ **Why, is there anything you need to tell me I might need to be careful about?** ”

“Just to be careful in general, nothing biggie,” Mora answered with a sigh. “Still, I suppose that was the only thing you wanted to tell me, right?”

“ **Yep and… how are you going?** ”

She snorted. “You mean to tell me that you are asking about my current whereabouts now of all times?”

…

“ **Yes?** ”

Her lips twitched, forcing the young woman to fight back a small smile from forming at that bluntness.

“Well, I’m four days away from reaching Los Angeles. From there I should be able to pick a plane for DC,” She started to explain calmly. “I think I will be there in a week at best.”

“ **I’ve heard there is some nasty weather in the US at the moment,** ” The young man mused calmly. “ **I hope that you find no issue because it.** ”

“I hope so myself,” She sighed with a nod. “Thank you for calling.”

There was some silence for some time.

“ **You’re welcome, Mora,** ” He replied with a happy tone. “ **Also, I’m glad that we have no problems about-** ”

“If you continue to mention that part again we might end up having some, mister,” Mora interjected, letting out a brief giggle about it. “And now I’ve to go. I really need to catch some rest so… until next time?”

‘Until next time?’ Why the heck she had to say that? It’s not like he would actually care for some more conversation if-

“ **Sure, why not,** ” He chuckled from the other side. “ **And I’ll leave you to your beauty sleep. Stay safe.** ”

“Bye,” The Cow Prime muttered quietly before the call ended, the phone returning to the bedside as she silently let her back arch right down to the mattress so she could stare up at the ceiling of the room.

The young woman blinked for some time, thinking about if she should really try to sleep with the chances of getting some nightmares or waste some time around in a search for some alcohol.

Her eyes closed softly, her thoughts softened to nothingness as she felt the drain on her mind finally pushing her to seek some rest.

Perhaps a long nap would help her with what kind of journey awaited for her.

_**And much to her immense surprise, the following couple of hours spent in blissful sleep were filled with nothing even resembling nightmares, but instead, the sensation of being lulled by a familiar motherly hum keeping every bad thought away filled her mind with peace.** _

\----------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d--------------d-d-d-d------------

**AN**

**And another chapter done, we are almost two thirds done with this story and-**

_**I’m bored.** _

**...What?**

_**I, the High Prime, am bored.** _

**Weren’t you… angry just a couple of days ago?**

_**Do you know what happens when I’m bored, Bukharin?** _

**...I feel like I know where this is going.**

_**When I’m bored, I become hungry-** _

**Yep, I’m leaving. I knew it-**

_**I’m not done yet~!** _

***Proceeds to run up away from the giggly Prime***

_***Proceeds to give chase~*** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betareader: Ant0nius


	20. First Step Beyond the Curtain

**Chapter 20: First Step Beyond the Curtain**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

**~Matt’s POV~**

The kitchen became the setting for unneeded tension as I finally finished my bathroom routine and prepared for a quick breakfast.

The moment I stepped inside the room, I noticed that both Diana and Randal were patiently waiting to give me their utmost attention.

Which, technically, was a bad thing considering what happened yesterday.

The woman in particular seemed fairly concerned, her worry less hidden compared to her son’s, and I tried my best to not call out the whole situation as I really didn’t need to deal with this. At least not this early in the day.

Taking my usual seat at the table, I stared down at a small plate filled with two jam-filled sandwiches left there for me.

I blinked, taking the first one and quickly giving it a little bite.

The silence was still there, starting to intensify the uneasiness I was trying to keep away from influencing my actions.

Instead of hoping for some changes and merely keeping quiet, I sighed and glanced at both Primes.

“I’m fine,” I muttered calmly. “Yesterday was… just a temporary thing.”

“You were feverish,” Randal retorted, his tone showing a mix of irritation at my nonchalance and concern over the entire situation. “We don’t want to sound overbearing, but you seemed sick and we can’t just ignore that.”

“It’s not much of an… problem,” I admitted with a sigh. “I did have similar episodes back when I was younger, but now it just happens randomly, and not as frequently as a couple of years ago.”

“What kind of ‘episodes’?” Diana quietly asked, curiosity building up in the middle of that sea of worry.

“As I’ve said, it’s nothing to be concerned about,” I repeated with a little more strength behind my words. “I think it was like one of my panic attacks- but the last one was two years ago and… it wasn’t that bad.”

There was even more tension rising up, and I felt like my assurances were hardly getting through with my words.

I sighed. “I’m fine, I’m not lying about this, and I didn’t have issues with the shift today,”

“I can shorten it up,” The woman offered quickly. “There’s no need for you to-”

“I’ve taken enough ‘pauses’ to try and keep up with my work,” I interjected as politely as I could. “I understand your concerns, I really do, but I can’t just mess things up by resting too much.”

…

In the end, Diana let out a single huff. “I guess there is no stopping you about this.”

“Mom?” Randal said with a surprised look, but the Cow Prime merely shook her head.

“If he thinks he can do it without having any more issues, I will give him the benefit of the doubt,” She replied with a strange calm, then she looked back at me. “But if there are any problems while you’re working, I will see that you’re bedridden for at least two full days.”

I frowned. “Then I guess I’ll get… going?”

“Just be wary that I will personally exact that situation if the worst comes to happen,” Diana pointed out with a degree of determination that got me quite tense.

“Sure thing, ma’am.”

She let out a brief snort, hinting at some amusement.

I left the now empty plate by the sink before walking outside the home and right towards the fields.

I had long decided to skip my usual visit to town, knowing that putting too much strain now would mean taking risks I really don’t need to make.

Humming quietly and enjoying the suave wind brushing on my face, I prepared for what was going to be a really slow-paced but attentive shift to make sure that everything was ready for the next shift.

My mind still had some questions about the night before, all of those correlating with the strange dream session I had experienced within my sleep.

It was… a blur of images, of faces, of people- and none of the scenes seemed to make any sense to my memory.

No distinctive traits that could actually help me make out what exactly I was looking at.

In the end, there wasn’t much I could do without anything that could offer me some clues over the matter and… I was admittedly tired of dealing with the unpleasantness of my amnesia.

Maybe it was for the best that I was left clueless, as the dreams did seem quite difficult to understand, yet also important.

Without skipping a beat in my walk, and not letting my thoughts obscure my current plans for today, I decided to quickly move my attention to the first task of the day.

The mature carrots were my priority early, the vegetables having a surprisingly quick-paced growth compared to the ones I had tried to grow back home.

The fertilizer and the special substances used for these products genuinely give me some good help in speeding up numerous processes that would normally take much longer than just a couple of hours.

Three open chests were prepared by the side of the fields assigned to the specific vegetables, and I carefully proceeded to take out the products that were more than ready to be brought to the market for the next day.

Two hours later and with the chests filled to the brim with the products, I moved to the next section of the farm.

The orchard was the very place where I had been found almost three weeks ago, where I had wounded up after that bizarre night and…

It wasn’t bringing me any hints about what had happened back there.

I took a moment to sigh before starting to pick up the red apples hanging by the branches of the trees there, a smaller chest busying my left hand as I used my right one to grab the pretty fruits.

There was a state of calm that was just what I was trying to find now that I really needed to think away from the various conflicting thoughts threatening to give me some headaches.

I started to hum quietly as I distractedly filled the various smaller chests with more apples, almost blitzing through this activity without even giving too much of a thought about it.

Just as I prepared to take the last few fruits left, I paused momentarily as I felt my cell phone vibrating in my pants’ pocket.

Putting down the chest, I looked down at its display by the very moment I fished it out from the pocket and brought it close to my face.

“Naerie?” I mused quietly, surprised that she would be calling so suddenly but… I guess there is some reason to contact me this early.

I pressed the ‘Accept’ button, but instead of the usual blank voice of the young Bear Prime I was rewarded with some giggles.

“Uh… hello?”

The giggles suddenly vanished, some silence following up before-

“ **Hi… Matt?** ”

I blinked, the quirky voice being familiar, but I lost just a moment to ponder over it.”

“Geecku? Is that you?” I asked quietly, and I was rewarded with new giggles.

“ **Yes!** ” The Lizard (?) Prime answered quite loudly. “ **You remember Geecku!** ”

I cracked a smile at that. “Well, I think it would’ve been difficult to forget about you.”

“ **But aren’t you… amne-thingy?** ”

I blinked. “Amnesiac?” I guessed quietly.

“ **Yes, amne-thingy,** ” She confirmed with a determined tone, a frown developing on my face. “ **You forget things.** ”

“I ‘forgot’ things,” I corrected her calmly, humming as I continued to pick more apples. “I don’t just forget everything. In fact, I remember Geecku.”

“ **And Ambar and Naerie,** ” She added with a hum. “ **But what about Minnow?** ”

“I didn’t forget about him,” I assured back, my mind slightly distracted by the other task I was trying to accomplish in the meantime. “By the way, Geecku, how did you get Naerie’s phone?”

“ **Oh? Well, I… found it on floor?** ” The girl tried to answer with an adorably awkward manner and I sighed with some amusement dripping from my lips.

Seriously, why would Minos have trouble with someone like her?

“Geecku, ‘finders keepers’ isn’t meant to be taken literally,” I started to explain quietly, quickly hearing a huff from the other side of the call. “You can’t just take something just because you found it.”

“ **Buuut- I bored,** ” Geecku replied with an annoyed moan. “ **You sound nice, why no wanna talk?** ”

“I never said I don’t want to talk with you,” I returned with some confusion.

“ **But you wanna say I bad because I took Naerie’s thingy,** ” The Prime continued to sound particularly irked by this. “ **I just wanna talk.** ”

“Did you try asking first?”

She huffed. “ **I did, but Hamster Lady says that I bad.** ”

Hamster Lady? Was she referring to… Ambar?

“You don’t sound bad, Geecku,” I pointed out. “In fact, you just sound a tad bit irritated by being stuck wherever you are.”

“ **I am!** ” The young woman groaned, but then she sighed. “ **But I know Matt is nice and he thinks Geecku no bad.** ”

“But I hope you’re still going to return Naerie her phone. I understand being bored and wanting to talk with people, but it would really be bad if you kept it even after you’re done with using it,” I commented with a degree of sternness, just enough to send the message across without sounding too pushy.

“ **I return it after talk,** ” Geecku promised quickly. “ **How are you?** ”

That was quite the sudden switch from a topic to another. I could only guess that she was really desperate for some novelty right now.

“I’m fine, just a little tired,” I replied genuinely. “How about you?”

“ **I happy talking with Matt!** ” She loudly proclaimed, and I shook my head at how silly it just sounded like. “ **But also sad Matt is tired.** ”

“It’s not that bad,” I hummed quietly. “Work can be draining, but it’s actually pleasant since it’s a nice day.”

“ **Really? Tell me, what’s in the sky?** ” The girl inquired giddily and I stared up through the small openings between the leaves and branches of the trees around me.

“Well the sun has yet to reach the highest in the sky, there are some clouds but no hint of raining,” I started to describe quietly. “There is a nice wind too.”

“ **I envious** ,” She admitted with a huff. “Matt is tired, but having fun.”

“Well, I still need to work hard for the shifts today,” I added. “And I can’t pause just yet to enjoy it. Perhaps after lunch.”

“ **But you still outside and walking around** ,” The Prime countered with a childish tone. “ **And… why you working?** ”

I blinked. “Can you elaborate? Why am I working?”

“ **Yeah, why not rest? Why not having fun?** ” Geecku inquired swiftly. “ **Place seems nice, why you working?** ”

“I need to work because I want to help someone, Geecku,” I explained with a hint of happiness. “Because she needs my help and since she helped me first, I want to return the favor.”

“ **Oh, you care her** ?” She pressed on with some interest. “ **Actually, what are you doing**?”

I frowned at this new change of topic, but I gave a slight nod to myself. “I was picking some apples.”

“ **Mhh~ I like apples, I want some** ,” The young woman commented. “ **But apples here taste yucky.** ”

“Well, there are some that work with apples and not always keep them fully natural,” I told her with a degree of understanding. Big companies generally add some substances that help fruits in avoid getting any issues like bugs munching on them, or just to preserve them better. 

“ **I would like them bigger and tastier** ,” She whined a little more. “ **But Hamster Lady say that those are fine- they not.** ”

“I guess that it’s just difficult to find producers that can offer that,” I argued a little, knowing that it’s indeed rare to find people that actually do sell simple apples and…

I blinked, staring at the little fruit in my hand as I pondered over the situation just brought up and then I let out a small smile.

“But I think I know how to solve this,” I continued with a confident tone. “Once you’re done to the call, you just need to tell Ambar that I have an idea about the apples and that I wanted to talk to her about this.”

“ **Really?** ” She asked with her mood rising up brightly.

“Yep,” I stated mirthfully and I could hear celebratory noises happening from the other side of the call.

I also heard the distinct noise of something crashing down on the nearby floor and flinched as I heard a loud yelp coming from the distracted Geecku.

“ **Whoopsie**.”

I snorted a little at her adorable reaction… but I couldn’t help but smile even more as I was somehow reminded of a similar situation.

Blinking at the reminder, I tried to recollect what memory exactly was correlated to this and-

“ **I think Hamster Lady close to my hideout** ,” The Prime muttered softly, half-whispering as she seemed distracted by the approaching footsteps.

“You were hiding?”

“ **...Yeah?** ”

I sighed. “I swear, Geecku, you can be a lively gal, but you can’t just make this many messes so often,” I half-chided, my mind growing a little fuzzy in the meantime. “I thought we had talked plenty of times about the fact it’s not about being good or bad.”

“ **It’s no Geecku’s fault if Hamster Lady is pricky and- wait what?** ”

I blinked again, this time my eyes widening as I felt my legs giving way and forcing me to learn on the tree behind me.

“ _**There you are, you naughty girl~.** _”

The phone fell by the floor, with the call ending as it reached under the cover offered by the grass.

I slowly descended, sitting down by the ground as I felt my breathing growing erratic once again, just like yesterday but… but something had indeed happened inside my head.

Some of the blurring scenes had grown clearer and I could recognize a distinct character now that I think about it.

Geecku- or someone similar to her. A little shorter- no, _younger._ Her hair ended by her shoulders and she was wearing some simple half-sleeved shirt and shorts. A bright smile, I- she was speaking.

But what was she speaking about?

I felt my breathing coming to a calmer rate, my heart normalizing as I carefully stood up and… my brief moment of sickness outright vanished.

Waiting for some time, I expected for something else to happen, but… nothing did and I was left with more questions than answers at what I just saw.

I picked the phone, only now noticing that the call had finally, and I went back to the other apples-filled chests with the new one.

Perhaps I really need a brief break after this one and…

_**How did I meet with Geecku in the past?!** _

\-----------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-----------------

**~Geecku’s POV~**

The living room in the High Prime’s mansion was mostly empty at this time of the day.

Yet right now a trio of women occupied it, each having different reasons to be talking.

Ambar was the one leading the conversation, with her tired-looking daughter, Naerie, trying to keep up, as it was quite early in the morning and a ‘thief’ had used her phone to call someone.

Despite the fact that Geecku should’ve really been feeling worried about the mischievous tone adopted by the ‘Hamster lady’, the adorable Lizard Prime was still contemplating about the last bits of the conversation she just had with the human she now considered quite curious to think about.

Matt Newcastle.

Unfamiliar name, yet his appearance and voice had both felt so interesting and nostalgic.

Odd, but not completely surprising for humans to look like others… and yet her mind had stirred the more she had delved in that discussion, about certain elements that had just clicked so well within her memories.

A tingle, a reminder about something familiar, then another… and again.

The strange sensation had persisted through the friendly chatting with the nice man, and while she felt the answer was on the tip of her tongue, she just couldn’t say it.

His manners were quite polite but he had also shown some understanding of her unique way of talking, almost trying his best to not outright annoy her with his good words.

He was nice, yet also restrained.

He was lacking something within his attitude, she was well aware about this very something actually missing off from his words.

A certain undertone that just seemed like a must as it was familiar, as _it was just needed._

And yet the Prime couldn’t just understand what it was, even now that Ambar was trying and failing to continue with her ‘stern chiding’ because of the lack of prompt from her daughter to go along what seemed to be a funny skit about punishing her.

Geecku would’ve been more than happy to bring support to the idea, just for the sake of seeing what amusing thoughts the Bear Prime had wanted to make out of this very situation.

Yet her mind was still sticking by that very last sentence that brought up the entirety of the interaction, the general warmth that had come out of it.

There were only a handful of people that could bring out this degree of nostalgia on par with what she was feeling right now.

Ambar was one of them, then there was Minnow, Gracey, Carmie, and Howlie…. And maybe the rest of the Crests too.

It’s been a while since Geecku had seen what had happened to Kate, but the High Prime had more than once mentioned that she was enjoying some pleasant retirement to her ancestral home.

And Xeánica had disappeared completely from her radar by the very moment she just decided to settle with working in a restaurant located by a seaside town.

Everyone had their happy lives, the only sad lady being the no-longer short Queen.

The woman had grown quick to annoy, too difficult to properly tease and… it’s been years since Geecku had the chance of having the barest interaction with her.

A disappointing thought that was motivated by the passing of someone she hadn’t pondered about for so long.

She could still remember her ‘buddy’. Because her buddy was her buddy.

The logic was simple, and impossible to just forget after so much time had been spent together with him.

Her buddy had been there to keep her company, to offer support when needed, but also helped her grow accustomed with the novelty of the real world around herself.

She could remember the limited perception she had about humanity, about the tribes and the annoying attempt of some to hunt her down.

Even after so many centuries had passed, Geecku can proudly say that she was the apex predator despite the presence of bigger and tougher individuals within her own race.

The discovery of so much more had helped her sharpen up her mind, her tactics, and understanding of freedom as a possible path to live her own life without any limitations.

Yet her buddy had been there to disprove her about this early on, to make her see that there was still a need to have somewhere she could easily fall to.

A limit, a safety belt… and for a time he had served in that role, willingly so.

Differently from other friends of her which the Lizard Prime had never stopped to think as viable mates, the young man that had gained her trust through hard-work and understanding ended up being seen as something more but also less.

He became her buddy, her pal, her best friend and… then he wasn’t there anymore.

She couldn’t remember exactly what happened back then, but something had happened to see a victory emptied by its greatest purpose.

Happiness.

Sure, the war had concluded for them all, and there was no threat trying to kill them all… but the cost had still stung deeply in her mind.

Discovering that her first homeplanet had been destroyed early on had left her unnerved, but when Earth had to be sacrificed, Geecku found a feeling of dread growing from both her heart and Crest.

Life perished, and while Neo-Earth quickly became her new home, she would never forget the price.

Nothing can just replace a loss, not even a replica.

But she can live with the pain and strive to attain another height of her existence.

She had to be happy, just like her buddy had wanted her to be forever and beyond. He had asked her to smile against the sorrow, not to mock the pain, but to lessen it altogether.

Sometimes smiling worked, and so did freedom… but Geecku couldn’t lie that some of that pain still made her frown sadly.

It had happened so suddenly and so deviously.

A moment her buddy had joined the fight and helped them to win against the Emperor, and then he wasn’t there anymore.

…

She blinked the moment her eyes started to burn a little, something soft slowly trailing down her cheeks.

It’s been a while since she had outright cried for this, and perhaps she just needed to let out a little bit of her own self-disappointment.

Her musings were abruptly interrupted as she felt a mountain of soft fur fall upon her, and then lift her up.

“Geecku, is something wrong?” Ambar’s tone sported an amount of worry rarely found nowadays, and her mind finally cleared out all the thoughts concerning her past, making her return to the present.

Even Naerie had looked particularly attentive of the situation, staring both at her mother and the fellow Crest as both kept the embrace for a while.

“N-Nothing wrong,” Geecku ultimately muttered. “Just thinking.”

The hug lessened momentarily. “Are you sure? Perhaps I was too forceful or-”

“Oh- not you. I think about… past,” The girl interjected swiftly. “But nothing bad. I’m fine.”

…

“Are you sure?” The Bear Prime said while giving her a tighter hug, just enough to drown the young woman in her embrace. “I’m not really mad about the vase.”

“Really?” The girl asked promptly. “I’m free?”

… “You really are fine, aren’t you?” Ambar inquired back with a hint of suspicion.

“Gecku said only think about past, but now think about present and… the hug is nice,” The Lizard Prime giggled while snuggling in that warmth, causing the Crest of Wisdom to sigh in relief at that mood swing.

“... For a moment, I was really worried,” She admitted before huffing at the cheeky girl. “Still, you have to tell me why you took Naerie’s phone, and who you called.”

Geecku pondered about this, debating about the scenario of having to explain to Ambar about her doubts related to the strange emotion she had in regard of Matt Newcastle.

Would it be a good thing to do? Was it going to help?

After all, the man had that amne-thingy that messed up with his memories. What a dreadful thing, to be forced to forget about your own past.

In the end, she hummed. “I wanted to talk to someone new and… I made a friend.”

The Crest of Wisdom appeared a little surprise at the last bit. “Oh? A friend? What’s his name?”

“It’s not Shin, right?” Naerie blurted out almost immediately, causing both to look at the younger Bear Prime.

“Who is Shin?” Geecku tried to ask, but the fellow Crest interjected before her daughter had to deal with some awkward situation.

“You still have to tell me who’s your new friend, sweetie,” The woman reminded with an amused tone. “I hope this isn’t a secret or-”

“It’s Matt,” The Lizard Prime admitted quickly, a bright smile on his face. “He is nice, kind and he wanted to talk to you about giving me better apples.”

…

Maybe she had been too sudden? Maybe there was one of those ‘innuendos’ among her lines?

Geecku’s mind couldn’t just understand what exactly happened in that split-second.

For a moment Ambar looked incredibly curious, almost fascinated by the mystery, and then the Bear Prime had given her a wide-eyed look as she tried to digest the answer provided.

Blue eyes met with golden-colored ones, and the Crest of Life felt like something big was going on inside the woman’s head.

“That’s… interesting,” Ambar eventually muttered. “But I guess that he has to be quite nice to make this impression.”

“Yes, I wanna talk more him,” The girl replied with a happy tone. “He said he knows how give us fresh apples that aren’t yucky, he said he want to talk to you.”

“About the apples?” The Crest of Wisdom sounded fairly tense once again about the matter, intensifying the suspicions of the observant Geecku.

It was rare for Ambar to behave this tensely, especially with how laid-back her personality was while dealing with a fair share of important duties as the High Prime.

Geecku herself wasn’t fully aware of the extent of her role, the limitations and the overall difficulty of the task, but considering that she was temporarily doing the Queen’s work, it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine this to be quite the difficult situation for her.

So why was she nervous about talking about Matt Newcastle? Why was it… problematic for Geecku to be fascinated by him?

“Yes and… is something wrong?”

The question seemed to finally snap the woman out of that strange attitude and into an uneasy smile.

It was different from the usual smile. It lacked confidence, and it lacked the calm that the Bear Prime’s own grins and smirks had.

Something was aloof, and the Lizard Prime knew it was all about the human.

“Nothing important,” Ambar answered quickly and then sighed. “Still, he mentioned something about delicious apples? I guess I should give him a call. How about you talk with Naerie while I’m at it?”

There was no room to talk about this development as the Bear Prime swiftly rushed out of the living room, probably to contact the human about the fruits he had promised her about, leaving her daughter alone with Geecku.

But the Bear Prime had nothing to worry about, especially with the Crest of Life.

Despite the young woman's attachment to her mother and other Crests, Geecku had long established some minor limits about tempting ‘fate itself’ by going after the children of her fellow guardians.

It just gave her a strange feeling, an unpleasant one, to even try her hand at any conquest effort.

So, instead of flirting about with the blank-looking girl, the Lizard Prime finally decided it was about time to get some answers about the pressing questions born from that silly interaction with Ambar.

“Naerie,” The woman started with a quiet tone, drawing the Bear Prime’s attention on her. “Ambar is lying, why?”

…

“What?” Naerie replied with a confused hint in her voice.

“She says Matt is ‘nothing important’, but he is important,” Geecku answered with a truthful tone. “He is nice, quite caring… but why he important?”

“Mother wasn’t referring to Matt while saying ‘Not important’,” The girl rebuked quickly, far too quickly. “The paperwork has been quite draining and-”

“Paper is bleh, but she gives it to others,” The Lizard Prime pressed on with some insistence. “And I know you lying… like Ambar.”

“It’s complicated-”

“Then make it simple?” Geecku exerted even more pressure, knowing that there was a defined limit of patience within the individual she was speaking to. Naerie was patient, but she wasn’t endless and she would crumble with enough pressure on her mind.

“Someone told Geecku that ‘everything can be summarized in twenty words’, so why is difficult?”

“I don’t have an exact answer,” Naerie admitted quietly, her eyes closing as she tried her best to not look at her interlocutor. “But it has to do with the Gods.”

The Gods? It’s been so long since the deities had moved their hand over their blessed new world.

And for a human? Now that was quite the odd predicament… enough to warrant even more queries about the matter.

“Nothing else?”

“Mom...” The girl looked away, clearly unnerved by the pressure. “She knows him somehow, same for Minos.”

...What?

Sure, they both knew him from the call. But was she referring to before?

But there was no way that someone this important would’ve been missed by Geecku.

Someone she had failed to take notice about? Impossible, she was well-aware of everyone around herself.

So… why was Matt Newcastle not only helped by the Gods, but also a close acquaintance to Minnow and Ambar?

It just wasn’t making sense, there was no reason for all of this to be possible… if not for-

‘ **I swear, Geecku, you can be a lively gal, but you can’t just make this many messes so often.’**

**/“You’re quite the lively gal, you know that, buddy?”\**

Her jaws dropped, and her eyes widened in realization as the pieces started to match up flawlessly within her mind.

Matt Newcastle, he was- but then- how!?

How is it possible?

They told her he had died, that he was no more.

And yet it was all making sense to her. He was him, he was her buddy.

Her shock silently persisted up until Ambar finally returned from her conversation with the human about the apples.

The Bear Prime looked relieved and somewhat calmer compared to how she had looked back when she had left that room.

But then the red-haired woman spared a glance at Geecku, and she paused in her approach as she noticed quite the worrying sign within the fellow Crest’s face.

There was no smile, there was no happy expression. There was a frown that was directed sternly at her.

“ _**Matt Newcastle… He is Geecku’s buddy, isn’t he?!”** _

\---------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------

**AN**

**Geecku makes a colossal discovery, Matt is making some steps towards this and I’m already itching at starting writing the prequel.**

_**You forgot that ‘Ambar got mauled by cute Geecku’ in that little summary of yours.** _

**...I’m dreading to ask but, are you alright?**

_**I’m peachy.** _

**...Then why are you glaring at me like that?**

_**Because I’m thinking that Summer is in two months from now, and Paraiso will be ‘fun’.** _

**...And now you’re smiling- wait, are you mad because of-**

_**Shhh, let it happen.** _

**No- I refuse to-**

_**Too late~!** _


	21. The clock ticks, it never stops

**Chapter 21: The clock ticks, it never stops**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

**~Matt’s POV~**

I was incredibly nervous.

My attention was forcefully directed at the main activity I was assisting, while also offering help to the various clients passing by who asked about the products on display.

It was supposed to be a normal morning. One where things would’ve been perfect, if not for some recent developments that brought me to question things that, up until yesterday, I would’ve thought to know to heart.

Despite my desire to just keep myself away from discussing with the Bull Prime currently sitting beside me, I had to also spare him some few words over the topics of our usual conversation to avoid any suspicions.

How was life, were there any problems, why tomatoes sold more than carrots-

It was pretty simple. Extremely harmless.

But the large context that left me in a state of perpetual uneasiness over Minos’ own connection to this little conspiracy I had started to unravel was leaving me quite speechless on various occasions.

The man seemed very attentive about my attitude. I would even go as far as say that it was more than usual. He wasn’t actively probing for any unexpected reactions, but he was still offering a downright odd behavior over the lack of my morning chattiness.

I knew that offering any clues about my inner struggle would’ve warranted a situation I wasn’t sure would’ve been pleasant for me. It was a gut feeling I really couldn’t divert away from influencing my thoughts.

I stared at the wood-based stand, the one where the rest of the vegetables had been carefully placed by the various sections and groups they were part to. I tried smiling, but found out that it was difficult to get even a sliver of a smirk going with the nervousness burning softly within my chest.

I could still remember trying to ponder more about the situation, trying to tinker about with my phone over any information I was able to catch about Geecku.

Considering her current whereabouts and the undeniable closeness she had with the High Prime, there was no reason to not believe that there was actually something about her in the internet.

After a quick search that I had managed to attain alone and while dinner was still being prepared, the results that I ended up finding were sketchy at best.

Nobody went by ‘Geecku’. Or at least, people that were known by the large public.

I decided against asking Diana and Randal about this specific topic, as I felt that the situation surrounding the Lizard-like Prime’s name was far bigger than I was making it in my mind.

The two were clearly clueless about what was going on and, considering the complicated plot that I was slowly uncovering with careful approaches, I wasn’t keen in putting them in danger by offering this new clue about the circumstances that led me there.

While I was completely sure that I was somehow connected to the quirky Lizard because of the sheer amount of confusing memories having a younger version of the woman in my ‘sight’, I slowly started to see this very revelation as a curious omen.

Maybe my arrival here wasn’t truthfully the result of some simple reasoning.

The fact that I felt more and more familiar with the ‘bigger’ world around me was more than enough to dissuade any opposition to this idea, yet some speculations over the matter had ensued within my mind.

What if the motivation was something that was actually important for me to know? What if this wasn’t the first time that I had been thrown in this crazier Earth?

The more I pondered about the ‘soundless’ memories related to Geecku, the more I felt that I had to have been thrown in this different universe before now. I couldn’t give other explanations to the questions born from these new memories. Except for the one that had me actually visiting this dimension in my past.

But why- or when?

My brain continued hurting for some time over this new issue, and the talk I had with Ambar over the promise I made with Geecku regarding sending her some apples mere minutes after I had returned back to the house seemed to increase that very state of discomfort.

The Bear Prime seemed to lack any differences within her attitude that could’ve suggested any suspicions over the ‘unplanned’ conversation I had shared with her cheeky ward, and she seemed more concerned over the little promise I had with the Lizard prime.

Yet I couldn’t help but notice during that very ‘normal conversation’ filled with a curious amount of flirty comments, that there was something ‘wavering’ within the woman’s tone.

It felt odd, unexpected and… worrying. A concern mostly directed at me.

I couldn’t exactly explain why I felt so sure that it was a strange detail from the High Prime, but I trusted my own instincts over the matter and restrained myself from giving out any nervousness in my replies to her words.

After that very confusing day, I ended up facing the next, bigger obstacle.

Minos looking tense.

I could tell that it wasn’t because of anything born from recent events, or so I hoped it didn’t. Rather, he looked fairly interested in how quiet I was currently being, maybe a little suspicious over my lessening hold over the usual conversations.

Deciding against pushing more of this attitude for the sake of avoiding any unneeded escalations, I knew that I had to bring up a topic that would see the Bull Prime talk more than I needed to.

It had to be something that was more connected to him and not much at me. It had to be… indirect.

“ So, have you been keeping up with calling your friends?” I asked with a calm tone, trying my best to hide my uneasiness. “I reckon that Grace was fairly determined to see you uphold that duty.”

Minos sighed, shaking his head and seemingly failing to grasp at the hidden meaning of this sudden turn within our discussion. “Every day. Same hour as usual.”

“ That’s some devotion,” I admitted with a nod. “But now I feel compelled to ask for more. C’mon, anything you can spare from your conversations with the lovely family?”

For some reason, the brunet let out a brief snort, appearing amused about something I had said.

“ Not much. Well… maybe something about Joy,” The Bull Prime spoke slowly, pondering over this very topic. “Do you remember when I first mentioned the Knights to you?”

I blinked at the strange twist, but still nodded at his query. “The ones that are responsible to keep up with those few Narakhan Tribes that make issues around the globe?”

“ That’s correct. Well, mostly correct since most of the recruits are assigned to support roles,” Minos answered with a relieved tone, perhaps glad that I didn’t need a refresher. “Joy has been asking her father for training to become one for some time now.”

And now I could see what he was trying to mention with his overall positive mood.

“ Kayin told her yes?” I suggested, getting a nod in return. “I suppose he’s experienced with that sort of stuff.”

“ More than you can imagine,” The Bull Prime replied. “By the way, I think I’ve never told you about the three ranks for Knights.”

...Three ranks? So there were tiers among the various Knights? And three, like Star Wars’ Jedis?

Still, I kept quiet as Minos started to explain the fascinating topic with some extra details.

“ There are the Acolytes. Those are the Knights-in-training that have yet to acquire any genuine experience and are meant to go through their pilgrimages to find their place in the world.”

I frowned. “Pilgrimages?”

“ Young Knights have to explore the world and apprehend one or more of the twelve Crest Clans. They can decide to settle with one of them and then invest themselves in growing within the Clan they’ve chosen.”

“ That sounds like an interesting and smart idea,” I commented with a surprised look. “I mean, this offers enough variety and capacity to choose so nobody is forced to stay one place or another. Plus, Field Experience is-”

“The Best experience,” He concluded for me with a sigh. “I’ve been an explorer myself.”

Pausing at this very instance, I was slightly impressed by the fact that Minos knew about this old saying that I myself had learned…

…

Wait, when did I learn that one from exactly?

Once again, I was forced to yank my thoughts away from the oddly blank spot within my head, and back in the still-open conversation.

“ After the Acolytes have proven their worth and chose their final Clan, they are called to go through a test which is determined by the leader of the group as to display their worth before obtaining the title of Knight.”

Giving a solid nod, I saw nothing odd about it… except that there was one last rank that was supposedly beyond Knights.

High Knight? Supreme Knight?… Cooler Knight?

“ The last category is fairly rare to encounter in a normal situation,” Minos continued with his explanation. “Dragon Knights are the ones that guard Crests the closest. They are some of the strongest Primes in the world. People with unwavering loyalty and determination to their important task.”

His red eyes stared at me with some curiosity, perhaps noticing the confused look that I was now sporting on my face at hearing the term.

Dragon Knight.

It sounded so… familiar. I think I’ve heard about it before from someone… in the past.

But I couldn’t let the Bull Prime know about this little development, thus, I shrugged at him and hummed.

“ I was imagining a cooler title,” I pointed out dryly, trying to appear merely disappointed because of the name of such rank.

The brunet looked perplexed at this. “A cooler… title?”

“ Yeah, I mean- Why ‘Dragon Knight’? Is their power somehow related to Dragons? Are they capable of becoming Dragons or-”

“ I don’t think that’s possible. Turning into a dragon,” Minos replied tightly, surprisingly enough the topic getting him to think intensely over it.

“ Well, then why are they called ‘Dragon Knights’? Why not… ‘Master Knights’, or ‘High Knights’?”

…

There was no response to my inquiries, and Minos seemed quite immersed in that very trail of thoughts that he failed to offer an answer to my questions.

“ Minos?”

He tensed up a little. “Mh- oh right-” He coughed nervously and nodded. “If I’ve to be honest, I’m not sure why it was decided to bestow this name to the highest rank for Knights. From what I remem- I studied, it was first used by Primes before Prism’s destruction.”

“ And there are no remaining artifacts that could help over this subject? I mean, I understand that the planet was destroyed but-”

“ I think the Crests might know more about it,” Minos replied quickly, his ‘panic’ still there for me to be surprised and slightly amused about. “But it’s rare to see one nowadays.”

I stared at the brunet with a serious glance, trying to understand why this very matter had him this much flustered and ‘unknowing’ of the entire matter.

It was odd to remember that Minos’ knowledge about Prime’s culture wasn’t 100% accurate.

“ Then, I guess it will be one of the few mysteries about Prism’s civilization that will stay unanswered,” I said while shrugging. “It’s one of the few things that technically don’t have an answer attached to it.”

The Bull Prime gave a slow nod to that, still affected by the lack of explanations that could’ve motivated the usage of the title.

We were both distracted by this large deviation I had masterfully obtained, and I continued to press some more on other topics of similar magnitude and kind up until we were done with selling the rest of the farm products.

Our return to Las Lindas was quick, quiet, yet still tense.

While the conversation had greatly lessened my worries about getting interrogated by the brunet, I now had nothing to offer to avoid unnecessary situations with my friend.

…

Can I even call him a friend now that I know that he was keeping some secrets from me? Secrets that were related to my current problem, about what had caused me to end up here in Neo-Earth.

Yet, much to my placid surprise, the Bull Prime seemed to be content with what had happened in the last few hours, bidding me a calm ‘farewell’ as he walked back towards the city once he had settled the empty carriage near the entrance.

I waited for a couple of minutes to look at his retreat. I was confused about his lack of interest in pursuing any further questioning from that occasion.

Once Minos was out of my sight, I proceeded to make my way back to the house, ready to see what Randy had decided to prepare for lunch.

Knowing that from this point onward things were going to be smooth for me, I felt my body easing the more steps I took towards ‘home’.

Opening the front door, I walked inside and looked around before pacing slowly towards the kitchen.

There wasn’t much of the usual noise coming from the kitchen and the living room.

Truly an odd circumstance, considering that the Collie should’ve been preparing food at this specific time of the day. It was the normalcy within the daily routine.

Before I had the chance of entering the kitchen, I found myself stopping as I heard a loud ‘Thud’ coming from deeper within the house, towards where the bedrooms were located.

With my stance tensing up once again with immense concern, I rushed to check on what was going on and… I started to feel drowsy the more steps I took in that direction.

Then, I almost tripped on myself at a ‘buzzing’ sensation rising up in my mind.

It was sudden, almost enough to make me jump by surprise at the unpleasant effects of what looked to be some dark-purple miasma coming from Diana’s room. Despite the dreadful sight and harmful noise growing within my head, it didn’t stop me from reaching for the door and checking inside.

The very moment that I entered the bedroom, I felt the worst scenario possible materializing before my own eyes.

Randal was trying his best to aid his mother, the Cow Prime writhing in her bed in a moment of horrifying agony.

The Collie hadn’t noticed me, as to show how much he was paying his utmost attention to the old woman, his efforts in soothing her plight seemingly failing to work on the dreadful sight.

Making more steps toward the bed, my wide eyes caught on pretty quickly to the various dark marks spreading all over Diana’s face and arms. The sleeves of her shirt had been rolled up, revealing the full extent of the tainted marks.

The Curse was acting up again, this time the effects were much worse than the last time I had seen it in action. I could feel myself paling at the panic-worthy sight, but I still managed to reach the unoccupied bed side section opposite to where Randal was.

The younger Prime looked affected by the situation as his body was slouching. His eyes looked tired, and yet he was pushing his own limits to continue with his attempts.

Instead of lingering there without doing anything, I remembered when this had first happened and what I had done back then that ended helping her up.

Reaching down with my palm, I grasped at her hand tightly, hoping that this was actually going to work.

My prayers were indeed answered, as something started to happen just as I did that. Her body stilled, her marks twitching on her fur before slowly retreating back… and rushing through my arm.

Eyes going wide in shock at this unexpected development, I expected utter pain to greet me with the taint reaching for my body-

But the only thing that greeted me was numbness.

The world suddenly went dark, and I felt my head clearing up of any thoughts as I found myself standing alone before… something.

I could see a pair of massive eyes, red orbs burning fiercely before a curtain of dark smoke that just held a partial silhouette of what I was looking at.

The world felt cold. I felt shivers go down my spine as I continued to look at the monstrous figure, hoping that this was just an hallucination.

The humongous being snorted in dry amusement.

“ **So I was correct, you’ve indeed returned from where you once belonged,** ”  The creature boomed with a terribly loud voice. “ **And just like before, you’re here to oppose my rule.** ”

I felt my throat drying up, but my body had gone rigid and guarded as I started  _ glaring  _ at the behemoth standing before me.

He tilted his head. “ **Once again, you, a little human, challenge my might. Once again… you prove to be as stubborn as when I first bestowed you with a glance.** ”

“ W-Who are you? A-And why are-”

“ **Enough!** ”  The voice was raised to a higher volume. “ **Ordering me? Commanding me with such a scandalous stutter? I don’t need to answer anything, especially to the one I consider my worst enemy.** ”

The smoke encroached towards me, threateningly so as I took a couple of steps back.

“ Stop hurting Diana, you monster!” I finally yelled. “I know you’re responsible for this, but I will not allow you to hurt her any longer!”

…

“ **Ahahah,** ”  The beast chuckled slowly, almost wheezing at my words before drawing a long sigh. “ **It’s amusing how you would still ‘threaten’ me while you lack your experiences, your memories… your friends. You’re but a speck of dust before me.** ”

“ Yet I- I faced you before,” I rebuked without thinking, my mind growing fuzzier the more I stayed in this strange landscape of darkness. “And I’ve beaten you! I will do it once more it-”

“ **Arrogance isn’t suited for you, young man. Be wary, for this will truly be the last advice I shall gift you with,** ”  The smoke-based monster interrupted with an annoyed tone. “ **With your return now confirmed, I will be watching the efforts for my own rebirth with trepidation. And our encounter- It will be legendary** .”

Before I had the chance of retorting his comments, I felt my body wobbling about. My footing grew unstable, and my breathing turned itchy and desperate as I slowly but surely fell on the floor.

Because, while I had been feeling mostly fine in that meeting with the dark figure, my body had gone stiff and fallen to the floor once Diana’s plight had been beaten back.

Blood was slowly dripping from my lips, my consciousness faded away as Randal rushed to give me help.

And yet, during that very moment of fragility for my body, I felt my mind growing more wary and focused that something absurd had just occurred before me.

_**Something that provided another key to awaken what had long been forgotten.** _

\-----------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d--------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d------

**~Naerie’s POV~**

The mansion was silent, and yet there was plenty of activity going on inside a certain young woman’s room as she went on with some heavy research.

It wasn’t the first time Naerie had gone through drastic lengths to try and solve complex mysteries. Yet this very case had gotten her worked up over the incredibly messy nature of the limitations imposed by her mother over it.

She had long accepted that there wasn’t much to do against the High Prime’s will over reducing the investigations over Matt Newcastle’s situation to a minimum.

Or at least, that had been the case up, until she had that close encounter with Geecku.

The serious tone adopted by the Lizard Prime, someone that the redhead had long deemed to be incapable of displaying anything beyond ‘amusing’ and ‘childish’, had been enough to knock some odd sense into her.

The interaction had been unexpected, incredibly shocking, but not as fierce and brutal as the one that her mother had been subjected to mere moments after the blue-haired woman had been done with her.

It was one of the rare times where Naerie was bestowed a full glimpse of two Crests fighting each other, albeit without weapons, as Geecku didn’t have any to use against her ‘enemy’ and the Crest of Wisdom wasn’t trying to hurt her close friend.

The brawl had occurred for some time, but eventually both had tired out, leaving the young Bear Prime to clean up the aftermath of that ordeal, a task that took her about five hours to complete.

Ambar had eventually decided that Geecku should’ve been told the truth while they enjoyed a ‘fun rendezvous by the local beach’, away from any listeners within the mansion… which included her daughter as well .

Left alone in her mostly-quiet home, Naerie decided to finally take a couple of minutes to ponder what had happened back in the previous day.

The sudden lashing out of the Crest of Life, the use of the term ‘buddy’ to define someone as simple as Matt-

She couldn’t still understand how a human had ended up befriending all the Crests at once.

There was a single occurrence where the group would reunite, but that was limited to just the Crests and their families, thanks to special boundaries created by Kate Aryoko.

The Gathering was considered a sacred meeting for the twelve Crests in the mixed culture of Neo-Earth. A time where the great heroes of Primekind and Humanity would meet up and spend some time together to think back about the past and the need to preserve peace in the present.

Naerie herself had been going at most of these reunions ever since she had recovered from ‘that’ accident, but she had never seen someone matching up with the figure and frame that she knew the human for.

And no humans had been present for that occasion either.

Trying to find any other meetings that she may have missed in the last decade, the young woman started to search for anything within the internet that could’ve helped in this matter.

Searching through the mainframe would’ve left a search history that wasn’t impossible to delete even with her high-degree permissions through the system, thus she was left to trust the vast and messy internet for this difficult task.

Two hours went by and multiple data was acquired through precise searching, going through all the available details of possible meetings that might have occurred between two or more Crests beyond the Gathering.

Only a small minority seemed to be confirmed reunions, with the rest being baseless rumors conceived by gossip magazines to besmirch the Crests’ public image.

Most of the accepted ‘encounters’ were limited to Ambar visiting some of the more known individuals, like Carmesi, Howl or even Xeánica because of her workplace.

After trying to find any correlation of a human matching with Matt’s features coming into contact with any of these individuals, Naerie decided that it was best to try to switch tactics early on, considering the lack of a trail through this method.

Turning away from that indirect research, her next step was to try and take a more direct approach with this situation, knowing that there were plenty of ‘prime witnesses’ that would provide some helpful information.

Yet some of those were hardly trustworthy considering their opinions over Naerie, Naerie’s opinions over those, and other different issues that just made it impossible to contact them.

The Crests were only twelve, but only a couple of them would be perfect to call and trust over the delivery of some answers to her multiple questions.

Her mother and Geecku were excluded immediately.

Carmesi wasn’t someone that she wished to share a conversation with, especially with how annoyed the woman was towards anyone related to her past.

Howl was married to Carmesi, and the Bear Prime didn’t need to have the former issue happen even there.

Feather barely used technology, the same could be said for Xeánica.

Minos was currently with the human and was keeping close contacts with her mother. From the Bull Prime himself, the redhead was aware that Grace would react ‘intensely’ if she discovered that something was ‘off’ about Matt.

Sem was always busy with his tiring work in the capital, with Bengala and Kate being respectively unreachable for similar but also different circumstances.

With that swift selection through logical elimination, Naerie narrowed the only candidate that she could trust into…

“ Hi, dad,” She greeted with a small smile, waiting for Pulsar to finish his yawning while he got off from his bed.

“ Oh, hello Naerie,” The Polar Bear Prime returned with a bigger smile, his eyes showing a little tiredness as he stood up to look properly at the communication device. “I wasn’t expecting you to call this suddenly.”

“ Sorry. I didn’t mean to call this early,” The girl quickly apologized, her meek attitude being answered with a patient sigh from her father.

“ It’s no problem, sweetie. I- Actually, I really had to get up early in the morning,” The man admitted with a nod. “Still, I guess that you aren’t calling just to check on your old man, aren’t you?”

She tensed a little, starting to feel nervous over the matter but still letting out a slow nod at that quick development.

“ There is something that I need to ask you about. Something that… I don’t want mom to know about, and it’s connected to your past,” The young woman muttered with a hint of uneasiness. “It’s important.”

Pulsar blinked at these words, his body straightening up as he gave even more attention to his daughter.

“ Truly? And why shouldn't your mother know about it?” He asked with some intrigue. “Did Ambar make some mess… again?”

Naerie shook her head at that. “Not this time. It’s not something about mom but… there is this strange case that she said is connected to all Crests.”

“ All of us? Anything about the emperor- you know if it’s dangerous, perhaps you should trust your mother-”

“ It’s not about the Emperor,” The girl interjected with some more pressure. “It’s… it’s about a human.”

…

“ Oh? A human?”

She nodded. “It’s someone that ended up appearing three weeks ago in Gossamer. Minos has been keeping an eye on him, and mother said that he is a trustworthy friend that-”

“ What is his name?” Pulsar cut shortly the explanation, his eyes sporting a strange glint.

“ Matt Newcastle.”

The redhead had expected a reaction from her father, just not as strong as the one that she ended up getting.

“ Oh- OH! So- wait, he is back and-” The Crest of Ice paused to let out a brief chuckle. “To think that he would actually return. He was never gone!”

… “ Dad?”

The man seemed to recover at her voice, his body regaining some of the previous composure, but his smile gaining even more happiness at these news.

“ Sorry, starry-bear,” The Polar Bear Prime apologized. “It’s just that I can’t believe that Teo is in Neo-Earth.”

Naerie looked confused at this new name. “Teo?”

“ I suppose you’re calling to ask more about him? I guess it’s alright considering-” Another pause, this time a frown adorning his face. “Wait, why would your mother not want to tell anyone about this? Is there something wrong with Matt?”

The girl was silent for a couple of seconds, recovering from the swift words coming from her father, but then she sighed. “He is amnesiac. He doesn’t remember anything about… his past here.”

…

“ That’s- That’s actually pretty bad,” Pulsar muttered, suddenly deflating at this revelation. “Still, you’re calling to know more about him. I guess he can sound-”

“ He is nice,” The redhead commented calmly.

A smile resurfaced at the words. “He was always like that, a nice guy with a big heart,” The man hummed in agreement. “The story about him is quite lengthy, and I don’t think I can give you much other than the basis about it considering how impactful his presence was during the war.”

…

“ The war?” Naerie inquired with barely-veiled shock. “But- Dad, that can’t be. The war happened-”

“ Centuries ago,” He concluded for her, a slow sigh leaving his lips. “And only members of the royal family, Crests and their Dragon Knights have lived long enough to be still there and narrate the tales of War against the Emperor… and the Grand Knight that aided us in the final years of that conflict.”

Her eyes widened in surprise at that very detail, as the biggest of questions was finally solved with that very subtle correlation.

Not only did this lessen the massive burden of unawareness she had over the case, but now she knew why this entire situation was being handled so carefully by her mother and… why both Minos and Geecku had been affected by this discovery so radically.

“ To be fair, I might be missing some of the super-early bits of his story. There’s a gap where he was still wandering around the galaxy to try and reach Earth which I’m not completely sure I know well about,” Pulsar added with a hum. “I would’ve suggested for you to contact Carmesi but… she would probably cause a mess if she discovered this. I hope you didn’t tell anyone else about this.”

The girl shook her head, this confirmation further easing the Crest of Ice’s worries as he started to narrate what he knew about the young blond-haired human that had done so much to irritate the Emperor, but also speed up the original Gathering.

_**And the more Naerie listened to the words coming from her father, the more she felt interested in knowing more about the odyssey that saw a big chapter of the War starting with four words.** _

\---------------d-d-d-d---------------d-d-d-d------------

**AN**

**Nine days are left, things are going to pick up rather fast.**

_**Do you really think that Naerie would actually go around my back for some ‘investigation’?** _

**...Didn’t she?**

_**Sure, there have been moments of rebelliousness from her puberty but- it wasn’t ‘that’ bad.** _

**Forgive me for calling you out about it, but you seem actually saddened that she hasn’t gone to do something truly rebellious.**

_**You really don’t know the pains and struggles of a mother wanting to seriously chide her lovely daughter.** _

**Now, that sounds-**

_**Let’s move on to the fact that Carmesi will have a primary role early on in the prequel.** _

**I would like to-**

_**Discuss this in private? Sure thing~!** _

**Wait, no-**

**[The Author would end up found hours after this registration was found. Another traumatic experience for sure. A happy one indeed.]**


	22. Pick your poison

**Chapter 22: Pick your poison**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

There were only a few things Miles felt certain about, but the scene happening a couple of seats away from him squashed one of those few paradigms.

Matt wasn’t supposed to be drinking this early in the morning, yet he was. Profusely so. Two empty bottles of Whiskey sat by the part of the counter in front of the human, all small but… still enough to dignify that something was wrong with the man. Which was incredibly odd. 

Like, what the heck was wrong with him? His mind scrambled to find a reason that could’ve driven the usually-cheerful farmer to this state of distraught. Heck, even Taffy looked concerned as well as frightened by this dark mood that had taken hold over their mutual friend. Minos sat beside the guy but… the Bull Prime hadn’t spared any words about it.

It was odd, almost confusing. But it did make sense that in order to crack the human’s shell, the taller man needed to take a careful approach. Still, it didn’t soothe Miles’ own worries on the matter. Whatever could get to someone as mentally strong as Matt, it had to be something world-ending.

And that wasn’t even an overstatement considering the immense moral support the dude had given to the Cat Prime despite the crap lingering from the fallout created by the latter. It was certain to the younger man that something was wrong here, and that Matt was just hurting himself by keeping quiet over the topic.

The bartender stared cautiously as he shifted the bottles away, and replaced those with a smaller full one at the muffled voice of the human. The man looked still attentive despite the absurd amount of alcohol in his body, once again proving to be surreal when the situation demanded it. The sight was disheartening, yet there wasn’t much he could do but stare and see how the situation developed from there.

…

‘ Actually no. I think it’s time to get moving onwards’

If there was something the Cat Prime prided himself in being, it was actually being a loyal friend when the time needed him to be one. Especially when the one in need was someone that helped him stand up from the pit he had fallen into. Standing up from his chair, the young man walked up to the stool beside Matt’s, silently shifting in there and expecting to be greeted at that point.

Sadly, there was no verbal response from the guy. Heck, not even a gesture over his presence being noticed. Miles blamed the alcohol for this situation, and decided to be the one to start some conversation. He coughed, a hand covering his mouth as a smile suddenly appeared on his face.

“ How are you holding?”

Simple, terribly general. And also incredibly awkward. Could’ve been better, but the Cat Prime wasn’t one that aimed for quality in this kind of discussions. Especially when the individual he was speaking to was way too numb because of Whiskey.

“ Hmm,” The human ‘replied’. It sounded like a muffled ‘fine’, yet Miles wasn’t completely sure that this was indeed the case. Drunk people were an odd group that had to be handled carefully. Not because he considered Matt a violent drunk, as he could easily see how docile he was right now with how catatonic he looked like. The issue was that misunderstandings could happen if certain words were mistaken for others.

A single nudge at his arm ensued, with the action finally drawing the human’s attention on him.

A small smile appeared on Miles’ face. He had to offer some good confidence out of this predicament. Matt blinked, head tilting to the side as he realized who was now occupying the chair. As the Cat Prime prepared to poke some more to get another reaction out of him, the older man finally replied.

“ I’m not brain-dead.”

The comment was unexpected, and the former student flinched at the blank voice dripping from those words. Still, his smile didn’t waver too much and soon Miles decided to initiate the conversation proper.

“ But you look like you already have a foot in the grave,” The Cat Prime pointed out jokingly. “Seriously, weren’t you the one saying that drinking alcohol early in the morning was just plain dumb?”

The human displayed what Miles could describe as an attempt to a shrug. “Never said it wasn’t… this is just dumb.”

The rebuttal was met with a frown from the Cat Prime, the young man trying his best to decipher the confusing tone and ‘logic’. If there was any in that discussion from Matt’s side. At this point, he gave a quick glance around, stopping at a certain Bunny.

Taffy had taken a moment to stare at the scene. She looked to have finished serving the other tables and yet the girl wasn’t approaching the situation as of now. Could it be a worry of worsening the situation since they all were unaware of what drove the human to this state of squalor? Or maybe was it something related to personal uneasiness at how to interact with the guy’s drunken state?

Nevertheless, the situation continued from that brief pause. This time, Miles had to take a ‘closer’ approach to see through with this problematic circumstance. Another nudge, this time the attention provided to him looked far more intense than the previous one. There was some slight irritation in his features too.

“ But if it’s, then why are you doing it?” The inquiry was meant to get more insight over the purpose of this ‘dumb’ action. “I mean, can I offer you some coffee? I swear, it’s addicting with how good it is-”

“ It doesn’t offer… what I want right now.”

His tone was sluggish. It made it appear like Matt wasn’t putting much effort in that conversation, as if he was reluctant to go forward after this point. It was rather clear that the human wasn’t just in the mood for some words. Which was bad, as Miles wasn’t feeling morally obliged to step back from his efforts now.

“ I don’t think alcohol can delete the past,” The Cat Prime suggested with a quiet voice. “It can give you a migraine the next morning, it can make you say embarrassing things- but it’s not bleach for the mind.”

“ Which is… saddening,” The man mused with a long sigh. “But that’s not… why I need it.”

…

What the heck would you need alcohol for then?!

This situation was growing more unstable the more he kept poking the crazy nest that was Drunk Matt. It was just sheer madness in a nutshell, but… it would be a lie to say that the curiosity wasn’t growing the more he delved in the depths of the rabbit hole he just had found. So he decided to press for more.

“ Then why?”

There was no response to that,as Matt decided that he preferred gulping down another glass more than bothering with that attempt to snatch an explanation out of him. It was annoying to be ignored like this, yet there was something about the mood the human was displaying that made it difficult to keep being negative towards him.

Miles pondered further over the predicament. There was little else to do without being counter-productive. Especially now with how ‘fragile’ the scene looked to be. While Matt still looked harmless, he couldn’t help but feel like he was currently tip-toeing in the dragon’s den. He could perceive the ‘heat’ from the sliver of irritation coming from the human.

But where the Cat Prime found an obstacle, someone else decided to intervene and continue through this path. Minos’ hand reached for the glass on the human’s hand, stopping Matt from gulping down another bout of liquor. The gesture was replied with a surprised glance directed at the Bull Prime.

“ You will not find peace down this path,” The tall brunet commented solemnly, red eyes glinting with true concern. “You know this already. You shouldn’t risk your health because of it.”

From this simple response, there was a viable outcome. One that held the only way possible for this discussion to come to a close. The one where the human recognized that Minos was genuinely trying to help him, and that speaking would only do good to him. It sounded like the best possibility, considering how friendly the two were to each other.

Miles had something else to cross off from the list of certainties he had within his mind the mere moment Matt snatched his hand and glass away from that hold. Instead of calm and quiet serenity that had persisted up until now, an annoyed, incredibly angry look appeared on the human’s face.

Those looking at the scene and that knew about the general stuff of the situation displayed various degrees of surprise. But it was Minos that seemed to appear the least surprised, much to the Cat Prime’s growing confusion. The fact that the Bull was now sporting a nervous look, muttering about guilt over something, was enough to prove that something had soured up the previously-strong friendship. But of what exactly, Miles couldn’t truly tell in that moment.

The tensions survived despite the silence, with the now-empty glass reaching back the counter as Matt increased his pace over the drinking. It just didn’t seem like a simple attempt to sate some thirst, but likely a stupid effort to ‘drown something within him’.

Now, there was a genuine need to worry about it. Taffy took a couple of steps towards the trio, glancing at the bartender for help, with the older Prime offering a calm nod and stopping himself from picking another bottle of Whiskey.

Once the visible one was emptied by the swift consumption from the human, instead of asking for more, Matt turned to Minos with a dull tone. There was silence, yet one could easily see how uneasy the Bull Prime looked to be at that very stare.

Miles wasn’t being offered a proper sight over it because of the seat he was in. Yet he could feel that something was off about it from the way someone as strong and tall as the brunet was reacting to it.

Instead of causing further escalation, the Cat merely listened for what was going to happen now and, instead of a continuation of the silence, Matt finally spoke with a dry tone.

“ Why.”

…

“ Why are you… keeping information about me away from me?”

The query felt heavy. Even though Miles was currently unsure about what Matt was referring to, there was a degree of weight within these words that felt absurdly burdening for anyone staring at this predicament unfolding.

The Bull Prime blinked. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

…

“ If it had been something about yourself. Something that… doesn’t concern me, I would’ve really left you be about that,” The human rationalized with a surprisingly calm tone. It felt devoid of any influence of the alcohol. “But I think you can understand that my demand wasn’t hypothetical, I know you are hiding something about my situation away from me.”

Was this about Matt amnesia? But why would he want to speak about it so publicly? Why so… so suddenly? And Minos knew more about it than he was letting out? What was going on?!

“ It’s complicated.”

The deflection was easily perceived as one by everyone, especially the human. Matt didn’t look amused at the response, pausing for a moment before actually giving out a rebuttal to it. But it wasn’t anything about words.

There was a blur. Miles’ eyes failed to keep up with the sudden movement, but he could see and listen to the aftermath as there was a noticeable crack and Minos falling on the ground as his stool gave away and broke, his hands rushing to his face and to the now-bleeding nose.

Shock swelled in the Cat Prime at the sight of someone as big as the Bull Prime being brought down with a surprise punch. The attack seemed particularly strong, and the retreating fist didn’t seem damaged by the impact. Instead of pursuing that violent opening, Matt merely stood out of his seat and offered some paper money on the counter.

“ This should cover for the Whiskey and the broken stool,” The human muttered quickly as he stared at the owner of the place. He didn’t pay any other looks at Minos, merely staring at the bartender as he mentioned this “I’m sorry for the damage. I will be going now.”

There was no continuation to this speech. The human ended up walking toward the entrance with a somewhat stable pace that made it difficult for a stranger to the situation to see him as a drunken ‘dumbass’. Miles was too shocked to move now, yet someone else had thought about keeping a watch over the drunken form of the man.

Taffy was now wearing her jacket over her uniform, with the bartender giving her a nod to confirm his support over this little ‘break from work’. The Bunny rushed up to walk beside the annoyed human, leaving the entire bar to see a recovering Minos trying to stand up by holding onto the corner.

While the hit had left him bleeding profusely, the Bull Prime hardly seemed furious about the development. In fact, Miles could say that the big guy was more perplexed than else. Also embarrassed… and not for the fact he had been slammed down by someone fairly weaker and shorter than him. There was just a sense of despair within his expression that gave off an unpleasant sight to the careful eye of the Cat Prime.

Instead of waddling in that eerie quietness, Miles finally acted upon the situation and inquired where the First Aid Kit was. Minos looked thankful when he was provided with some bandages and medical alcohol, yet the dreading look that was now matching with the overall perplexity of his posture was enough to confirm one little thing.

_** Whatever had happened to Matt, it had put him in the worst of moods. ** _

\---------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d----------

** ~Matt’s POV~ **

To be fair, perhaps I should’ve offered a better warning before punching Minos.

Sure, I wasn’t regretting finally lashing out at the guy. I knew that he was aware of what had caused my amnesia and that he was keeping the truth away from me. But maybe, I could’ve given him a chance to stress under some verbal pressure.

Just like I was conscious after about a couple of years of delving into the world of liquors, the Whiskey did make my patience burn up faster than usual and my ‘niceness’ had dried up at the fact that the situation now required me to understand what was going on with me.

I was still in shock about what I learned about earlier in the morning. My brain just couldn’t digest what the doctors had said about the comatose Diana. She was… stable. For now. But the situation was going to change soon as the circumstances were only worsening from this point onward.

The medicines weren’t as effective as before, which meant their effects weren't going to do anything to further slow down the deadly process. And that was going to be a problem  _ if  _ the woman was going to wake up from her current sleep. The chances of that possibility to happen were high, but not above the comfortable 90% I wanted those to be.

Randal was distraught, and I would’ve offered him some comforting words if not for the doctors limiting the presence of people within the house not related to the patient. That part of Las Lindas had been literally turned into a small hospital with the small group of medics having been assigned to Diana’s case.

So yes, despite my willingness to provide assistance to the medical squad, I was forbidden from doing so because of some rules regarding this specific kind of case. Out of my temporary home, the only place I could go to spend the painfully indefinite amount of time I was forced to go through without having any contact to the farm was the small town near Las Lindas.

The bar had been the first place to hit by, but my early commitment to at least try to find some support from others drowned the very moment I decided to indulge with some alcohol. It wasn’t an addiction. It’s been three weeks now since I hadn’t taken something even so close to simple beer, but the call had been stronger than usual.

I needed to go numb. Completely. Whiskey was the compromise that just fit well in terms of flavor and potency. It wasn’t the best, but the saloon hardly had something strong enough to put me in lalaland. Then things happened, people worried. Minos is surely nursing a broken nose, and I was being yanked around by a certain Bunny Prime.

Taffy didn’t seem interested in some whining from my drunk self, but I was really getting irked by the way she was pulling me around so strongly and so suddenly. I wasn’t mad, just positively confused and irritated by the unexpected development. She was never the one to take this much initiative on the matter, and I was uncertain over what she was expecting to do by pulling me around town.

In the end, the trip proved to be fairly ‘straightforward’. The young woman had us wander around several shops in what looked to be a lengthy shopping spree. I was baffled by the fact the quantity of stuff bought didn’t match with the amount of shops that we were visiting. It was less than a dozen, yet there were some interesting ingredients and… juice boxes. The situation was tense, but not enough to warrant some questions over the matter.

Finally the madness came to an end when we arrived at a familiar spot in the park. Instead of settling ourselves by the patch of grass away from the path, we took a seat by one of the benches there. Taffy hummed, her green eyes scanning through one of the two small bags containing the product she had bought and pulled two of the juice boxes.

“ Carrot-flavored?” I inquired with a hint of amusement, blinking at the huff coming from her lips.

“ It’s my favorite. Any problems with that?”

… “ Not really, no.”

Her smile returned at that, and she nodded as she glanced at me with an eased look.

“ You’re not mad at me, are you?” I asked again, this time moving the attention back to the main reason that saw us now sitting alone by the mostly-deserted park.

The place looked so desolated. But at least there wasn’t anyone causing irritating noises as my brain was finally sobering up after three full bottles of Whiskey. Which meant sensible hearing and a mind prone to headaches at the minimal use of loud tones to address stuff.

“ What you did to Minos felt so sudden and horrible,” The Bunny confessed with a sigh. “But I know that you’re not the kind of individual that makes use of violence without a ‘good reason’. And I think he seemed legitimately guilty of something.”

I nodded as we both let our tension go, slowly conceding to a closer position to each other as Taffy leaned her head to rest by my shoulder. She brought her juice box up to her lips, enjoying a little bit the beverage as I struggled a little bit getting mine prepared. In hindsight, I should’ve probably moderated myself with my drinking.

“ You think he knows the truth about your amnesia?” The girl inquired softly, nuzzling a little as I took a quick sip from the carrot juice. “You seem fairly convinced.”

“ I’m sure of it. And that’s what frustrates me the most,” I answered with a huff. “I know Minos tries to be a good friend… but the way he’s keeping me in the dark about it is…”

Taffy nodded slowly at my unfinished comment, catching on with the meaning I was trying to bring up. Still, she didn’t answer quickly, letting the soothing wind further lessen up the irritation I was feeling from that escalation. I felt aggravated, because I _was sure_ that Minos was trying to mean well.

He was a good guy that was trying his best to keep at peace with the world. Someone I trusted- no, I once trusted and now, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy about every time we were once near each other. What if there was another big lie around the corner? How far did the entire uncertainty extend to?

I could only theorize at this point, and hope that the worst options would not become the truth. The new variable presented by that dark figure… put me in the worst of moods.

If Diana’s conditions had left me on the edge, encountering the dangerous individual felt like I was delving into the most troublesome of circumstances. I could perceive that something was wrong about the creature. That something about it was just unpleasant within its existence.

I knew it. I could sense familiarity, merely looking at that mysterious figure. But I couldn’t just give it a name, nor a reason why I knew it. But the malicious intent behind the burning orbs that were its eyes was enough to confirm that the being meant bad things.

A monster, one that was caged well away from there.

…

But then how did I end up encountering it? And why was it correlated to Diana’s conditions?

Just as I thought back at the creature, I started focusing back on the very detail that made last night a sleepless one. It was the chuckling. That chuckle… I knew it from somewhere else. I knew the figure. I hated it, and it hated me in return. But where did our hatred spawned from? And why did it just feel right to keep such a bitter reaction towards the unknown being?

More blurs, this time the mere thought was enough to send sharp and intense waves of pain through my entire core. I could remember something, but I couldn’t distinguish voices nor images. Everything just… burned. There was fire, but also a sense of pleasantness in that burning emotion. I felt fiery at the various of those. I felt proud at the final one.

But I couldn’t get anything from mere emotions. And I was stuck with just more puzzles to solve in the meantime. I knew that I could do something for Diana. That I had the power to actually help her. I was now sure of it. The encounter with the dangerous figure had proved it.

…

I sighed, glancing to the side to try and distract myself from the migraine by interacting a little more with Taffy. Yet when I turned to address the Bunny Prime, I didn’t find the familiar pink-haired young woman. Instead I was given a closeup of someone else.

I almost jumped at the sudden sight, yet I had a sliver of sureness that this was still Taffy despite the ‘wrong appearance’. I could feel her now non-existing bunny ears itching a little close to my cheek and… she was distracted, offering me time to properly study this strange sight.

A Coyote Prime. The first detail that got my attention was the red mane of hair trailing down to her lower-back. The bright crimson matched well with the similar shade that her half-closed eyes had. She was wearing a dark-blue cloak that covered her body, and the frontal opening gave plenty of sight over her sleeveless gray shirt, black pants and armored boots.

I felt my chest getting squeezed just staring at this individual. I knew her… I cared for her. But I didn’t know her proper name. Or why she was important.

‘ I’m so sorry. I should’ve been stronger.’

A sob, then two. A bloodied smile, a dying wish. I felt the guilt washing momentarily back on my skin. I could feel sins trying to crawl on my back. But it wasn’t happening right now. It was… in the past. Far away, in a situation well-beyond what I could remember right now.

“ Is something wrong?”

I blinked, hiding away my surprise as I noticed that her voice was Taffy’s. I hummed nervously and I stared away before answering.

“ I’m sorry for… making a scene at the pub.”

She let out a relieved sigh at this. My heartbeat picked up a little more at the sound correlated to her oddly-familiar face. I saw her appearance alternate briefly back to the Bunny Prime, yet the hallucination held strong for a little more. Enough to provide me with some incredibly heavy jabs at my poor head with the strange display.

“ It wasn’t your fault. But you should really drink less if you want to deal with some unpleasant situation,” The young woman mused. Sternness was diluted in a sweet and kind tone. “There are better ways than that ‘dumb’ attempt.”

I blinked again, this time staring in front of me as I felt… nostalgic. Things were flashing, with the hallucinations spreading, but not persisting as the one that altered Taffy’s current ‘appearance’.

Maybe it was some effects from the alcohol holding well onto my mind. Logic was slipping away, but I was too tired to commit to the absurdity unfolding before me. Seriously, who would’ve thought that I would be sitting there and stare so happily at the nothingness.

I wondered if this mind-trick was going to last more than a couple of minutes. If perhaps a quick nap would’ve been needed to dispel this kind of madness. But before I had even the time to ponder over this, I felt ‘Taffy’ shuffling in her seat.

“ Do you… want to tell me a little more about what happened?”

...I stared back at the Coyote Prime, knowing perfectly well that I was staring at the quiet but inquisitive look placed on Taffy’s face… but now within this other individual. This was just insane, but I ignored the crazy alteration for the sake of not making a scene.

So I lessened my tension, stared up at the cloudy sky, and started to tell her about what had happened yesterday and earlier this morning. The tale was curt, as I offered a restrained accounting for the sake of driving away the majority of the foul thoughts over the matter.

I still faced the bitterness when Taffy started inquiring for more details about the subject. Her mood was dampened at the unpleasant notes of the topic, but her curiosity in understanding the reasons behind my plight indulged her to delve further than she genuinely wanted.

I mean, why wouldn’t she be feeling sick that I was bringing up the matter of losing someone I cared for. Especially when this very circumstance had happened to her when she had lost her mother to-

…

Wait. Taffy lost her grandfather because of natural causes. So why was I thinking about… an assassination attempt to her mother? I was fairly sure that her mother, a despicable woman from the way the Bunny had mentioned her, was still healthy as far as I was aware about. And why did this thought feel so similar to… what’s happening to Diana?

My head was going numb again with so many thoughts burdening my capacity to think straight. This time, it didn’t feel like it was caused by the Whiskey. Before I had time to contemplate more about this, I felt Taffy squeezing at my arm and… she was back to normal. A green-eyed concerned look reached deep in my mind as she stared up at my own eyes.

“ Is everything alright?” She questioned carefully, her tone soft and cautious. “You look paler than usual.”

I kept quiet for a while, calming down my heartbeat and regaining some bearings over my current situation. I finally sighed and nodded.

“ Just… just a small moment of stress,” I half-lied, knowing that mentioning the hallucinations would do more harm than good at it. “By the way, I forgot to mention how gorgeous you look today.”

The comment got a blush from the Bunny Prime, which prompted a playful punch at my arm. I chuckled at the adorable reaction from the cute woman, finally letting myself ease down at the lack of any absurd insanity unfolding at the moment.

Whatever had happened there… it kept me attentive for some time. Still, I decided to speak with Taffy for a little longer, inquiring about how her painting lessons were doing. She was more than happy to provide me with numerous ‘achievements’ gained through Minos’ lessons, and I found myself at peace as time flew away.

Much to my surprise, I received a call from Randal mentioning how Diana had finally awakened from her comatose state. Her conditions were stable… but it would take a little more for her to actually move around as usual. I felt grateful at how the situation had unraveled, but I thanked Taffy for keeping me company in that gloomy moment.

She was elated by the thankfulness, but still chided me for diving my own head into alcohol at the first sight of something terrible happening. It was refreshing to be called a moron by someone that understood the plight I was almost going through… again.

Returning at the farm got me a hug from a weary-looking Diana, and a stern lecture about drinking alcohol so early in the morning from the fiery lady. Despite the grim prospect for her life expectancy offered by the doctors, the Cow Prime seemed to have lost little of her fiery spirit.

But while I was glad things had calmed down, my worries worsened and ended up with me calling both Mora and Alejandra over this matter. With one picking up pace in reaching the nearest airport, and the other making accommodations to arrive at Las Lindas by the early hours of tomorrow, in order to stay there for a full week. 

_** Hopefully, the worst was indeed gone… ** _

\----------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----

** AN **

_** I have to say, you tend to be quite cruel in your efforts to ‘hide away’ the incoming sad moments. ** _

** It’s not hiding if the truth is already known. **

_** Are you sure about that? ** _

** Kind of? **

… _ **Do you know that Paraiso opens in about two weeks? Are you ready for some fun~?**_

** ...Shit, I forgot. **

_** I got your things packed already- ** _

** No wait- **

_** I got the sun lotion, the swimsuits, some spare clothes. I got yourself some fun boxes too~. ** _

** Sthap!! **


	23. Secrets Told

**Chapter 23: Secrets Told**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

“How are you holding up?”

Alejandra merely blinked at the question as she continued staring at her glass of water.

We were sitting alone by the table in the kitchen, with Randal staying within Diana’s room to help her with the basic needs. The older Prime was doing well, considering how weakened her body was. There wasn’t any reason to lie to myself about the gravity of her conditions, but I couldn’t help but be lulled to a tense peace at the fact she was doing well.

She could still walk. Barely, but still, it was possible for her to go to the bathroom. I wasn’t optimistic and I couldn’t really feel myself pulling a jovial look with how grim the situation. Especially in front of Alej.

The young woman had a panicked expression when she arrived at the farm just a few hours ago. Giving a curt greeting, she quickly asked to see her surrogate mother. I complied without protest, aware that she needed to see the truth for herself.

Diana happened to be awake. She was in a rather joking mood as she weakly teased her oldest child. Randy was more than happy to accept the shots, retaliating with even weaker remarks.

It was odd to see that kind of scene unfold because, while it sounded so similar to what I had seen in the last few weeks, I could tell that the overall emotion among them was underlying sadness.

After getting scolded by Diana, I limited my interactions with her. It wasn’t something I did out of uneasiness of being around the kind lady. It was more of a… need to let her close family take all of her attention.

Randal deserved to be there, same for Mora and Alejandra. They were her family, and she needed that kind of affection.

What about me? I guess the question is a fair one, especially with the last couple of days here at the farm.

As much as it felt there was an effort between the two of us to bond in a familial way, I wasn’t going to barge my presence within that delicate moment. It would surely be despised by Diana upon hearing about it, but the truth was terribly harsh for everyone as things were right now.

“I’m… I’m doing well,” She muttered quietly, her blue-eyed stare failing to move away from her glass. “Still, I can’t help but feel like this should’ve been much worse for me.”

…

“Is it wrong if I… can’t get more worried than this?” The young woman inquired and I sighed.

“No,” I replied, my eyes moving to stare the central decoration of the table. “You’re just… unnerved by the eerie peace.”

She blinked, this time looking at me with a confused look. “What?”

“When I called to reach the hospital _that_ night-” I paused, my chest tightening at that very remembrance. “I waited four hours before I was told what really happened.”

The antiseptic smell of the hallway. Truly a detestable thing to be experiencing for that eternity. My nose itched - _burning_ with the stinging sensation it left on its passage.

But that wasn’t the worst sensation to endure. No, the real problem was…

“It’s the silence,” I admitted without shame or restraint. I felt a burden return to my shoulders, but this one was worse than I remember it being. “Diana is still sick, but we don’t know if this is a fall she’s going to recover from or not.”

A grimace appeared by Alej’s lips. “I… I think I remember it from when Dad was dying. But… but I don’t remember it being this oppressing.”

I didn’t answer that. Emotional pain wasn’t objective, and I wasn’t going to press her into talking more about the matter. But while I didn’t plan to ask for more, the Cow Prime was ready to offer her recollection of that specific event.

“I remember crying. Mora and I were sitting together in the school bus when I received that message from Dad’s driver. As she understood what was going on, she started stubbornly hugging me up until we were back at the farm,” Alejandra narrated with a quiet tone, her stare once more returning to her glass. “Diana had received a similar message and… she was quickly made sure that I was coping well. I wasn’t… fine back then, and she knew it.”

Listening to her words, I merely nodded as she went on with the details about that situation. I could relate to a fair point, but I kept myself from asking anything as she continued with her remembrance.

I was so immersed that I failed to notice that as she concluded with her explanation, Alej was giving me a curious look.

“What about you?” She asked, swiftly pulling me out of my reverie. “Did you have someone that helped you with the pain?”

“Hmm?” I hummed ‘intelligently’, trying to make sense of what she was asking from me. “I… what?”

The Cow Prime sighed, but she nodded at my confusion.

“When I lost my father, I had Diana, Randal, and Mora,” Alejandra corroborated. “But I don’t think you’ve ever mentioned having anyone to help you through the grieving. I know that you have relatives but-”

“But we weren’t that close to begin with,” I interjected tightly. “My father and uncle were barely on talking terms before the event and… I know that my aunt and uncle didn’t have the means to house me in their home. Their income wasn’t good enough to tank more expenditures.”

“That’s not what I’m asking about,” She calmly reminded me, and I sighed.

“It’s not,” I confessed, leaning back to my chair as I thought back about that specific part of my existence.

Everything was numb, my certain future felt gone from my grasp, and I could remember a distinct uneasiness at even pondering about what had happened. I remember attempting to hide the pain through hard work.

Photography was something I was amateurish back then, but I was decent at writing articles, and my experience with the school’s newspaper back in highschool was proof of it. I had asked one of my former classmates, someone I knew that was interested in a good life as a journalist, if he wanted to offer help in an ambitious endeavor. To try and catch the attention of important editors by posting independently through an online website.

We got the attention we needed to make a big jump for a proper career and… then ended up splitting to expand our opportunities in that chaotic line of work.

I was a drone to my job. There were never certainties in the first few years, and I was unwilling to cooperate with people beyond the assignments provided by my various bosses. Colleagues didn’t mind most of the time, but rumors started to circulate over the reasons driving me away from befriending those at the workplace.

I didn’t care, or at least I forced myself to focus only on the primary objective. Work, work… and more work.

Assignment after assignment, I made myself wealthy enough to lessen up my approach in hounding for more work to do. I was desperate to do something every single occasion, and sleeping hours shortened to less than healthy with the absurd pacing I had gotten at that point.

When I got my own house, the very place meant to be my haven, which was as modest and safe- as nice and as peaceful as it could get, that I finally… tripped on myself. An ungraceful fall ensued and… things were blank most of the time.

Drinking booze became a habit. One that I despised from the very beginning, but couldn’t get away from after two years of constantly visiting the bar. Therapy ensued after this habit had started severely influence my clean streak at work.

Some of my bosses had noticed that my neat shirts were smelling of beer and other alcoholic beverages on a daily basis. A stern reminder of the workplace’s rules got me to back away from that unpleasant… side of myself.

I didn’t do any of that Anonymous Alcoholics. I didn’t believe that throwing myself at a crowd of people suffering my same problems was going to work well with me. Especially since my general dislike of social situations making interactions of that kind a taboo for me.

Spending half of my savings on that blasted ‘doctor’ managed to reduce my interest in drowning myself in booze. I had a mean to just stop drinking… but it wasn’t complete healing on my part.

I still had a toxic love-hate relationship with alcohol, but I could just say no to the urge when it swelled inside.

“I had someone,” I answered with a hint of tension. It was a lie, but I prayed that I wasn’t really going to dive-bomb in that unpleasant discussion.

“Truly? Whom?”

“People.” I needed to say something smart. Something that would deter her from continuing. “A former classmate of mine. Someone that helped me with work and-”

“The one that eventually tried to slander you through some media campaign?”

...Oh right, he did come around to try and stab me in the back when I achieved success and he hadn’t. That entire situation ended up in a bad manner. I didn’t pay much to have a proper defense to that attack, but he needed a lot of coin to avoid the worst punishment when his plans backfired on him. He ended up jailed for the stunt he tried to do backstage.

Truly a tragic story, but one that literally screwed with my attempt of avoiding pressure to the twist this conversation was taking.

“You’re not even putting an effort into that,” Alej commented dryly. “I thought you would’ve been a little more… creative about it.”

“Never been a good liar anyways,” I confessed with a nod. “Lies aren’t just my thing.”

“Which makes for an interesting flaw to have,” The young woman said with a fascinated tone. “But I think we shouldn’t digress. I asked a specific question after all.”

I sighed. “Fine- I had no one.”

…

“And?”

“And what?” I rebuked with a hint of irritation in my voice.

“You just went with the pain… without anyone helping you through it?”

Confused by her skeptical tone, I still managed to nod. “There wasn’t much to do at that point. I had nobody to trust about it. I… I wasn’t a social butterfly, and I tried to really focus on my… job.”

“A job that wasn’t what you initially wanted,” She pressed on with quite the confidence. I was almost baffled by the way she was carrying herself around that topic. “You had a bright future. One that bestowed you wealth, peace, and prosperity. One that you ditched… because you didn’t want it.”

I kept quiet. I had already told her about this and… I was unsure what she was aiming to do by bringing this up once more.

“Even now… you still think that by taking that path you’re in the right,” Alejandra commented with a sad frown thrown at me. “You think that by punishing yourself about it- that by condemning your only chance to a happy life, you’re redeeming yourself of guilt that shouldn’t be yours to be feeling. You didn’t cause your parents’ death.”

I didn’t?

I kept quiet. I could’ve protested, I could’ve easily shredded that silly assumption. But the Cow Prime had hit the heart of the matter. And she continued hammering without hesitation.

It was a situation driven by good intentions, but I was feeling less and less willing to delve deeper in the can of worms that was my past. I didn’t want to suffer through it all… again.

Maybe, surely- or maybe it was just a dumb scenario to even consider. I was stuck in a crossroad that either had me return to the things I despised in the last couple of years, or make a step in a new direction.

I was still unsure if the novelty would have granted me happiness or more despair.

I didn’t know what to do and what to think. And I was stuck on my own dilemmas about it as the silence continued.

Finally, I managed a sigh and a nod. “You’re… right.”

Blinking a few times, Alejandra leaned forward with a curious look, while holding a concerned glint that shined from her blue orbs.

“I should’ve been more mindful of this and… I’m sorry that this had to be repeated so much before I accepted it,” I paused, I looked at the young woman with a genuine regretful expression. “You know my pain, or at least you can understand it to a fair point.”

“Which makes it easier for you to trust me about it and… I’m glad,” She said with a smile. “I really am. I know how difficult it is to open up about this very topic, and I want you to know that we’re all here to help if you need it.”

I nodded, cracking a tiny smile at these words. Still, I soon discovered that the Cow Prime wasn’t done speaking.

“Also… how are you holding, Matt?”

I almost snorted at that sudden question, but I merely shook my head.

“Did Randal tell you of the scare I got yesterday?”

“He told me that you went to the local pub and returned smelling of alcohol,” She flatly remarked, making me sigh at it as I prepared to explain that very circumstance.

“I was- I didn’t do it out of a whim- it’s just that-”

“You needed a break and… a way to clear out your mind.”

I sighed. “Can you not do that?”

Alej blinked with faux-innocence. “Do what? Interrupting you by guessing right?”

“Are you playing with me?”

“A little,” She admitted shamelessly. “And I guess we both need to get our minds out of the sadness. At least for some moments.”

“Oh?” I muttered with some interest. “Then I assume you can tell me if Tootsie had asked you to come with you.”

The young woman frowned at the mentioning of her trusted second-in-command.

“I don’t know if I should be impressed or shocked with the fact you thought right about Ms. Roswell. Mind you, it was kind of tragic to refuse her assistance in this case… but she seemed to take it well with my request to come here alone,” The businesswoman pointed out. “But I think I will settle with confusion. How did you get that one?”

I shrugged. “Kind of a secret. But I can hint that Tootsie seems to be the kind of girl that would stick with you to the very end.”

“She’s incredibly loyal. And I consider her the most valuable asset in the organization,” She confirmed without hesitation. “I don’t see how this detail should ‘help me’ understand what you’ve just said.”

_**...To be fair, I find her denseness to Tootsie’s romantic efforts kind of cute.** _

\-------------d-d-d-d---------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-------------

With the aching persisting even now that he had applied medical ointment and bandages to his nose, Minos started to remember why he was meant to dodge punches thrown by someone like the Grand Knight.

It was something he should’ve expected, especially with the kind of emotions being displayed by the drunk human. Matt was a pacifist nowadays, but that didn’t mean he was unable to retaliate physically.

The emotional toll, the growing distress over the situation unfolding at his temporary home, and the fact he was now aware that Minos knew important secrets about him. Everything was starting to channel into the intense frustration that his friend had been enduring up until that moment.

The pent-up stress had erupted in a brilliant moment of raw violence. The punch had been easy to notice, but the overall speed and precision was impeccable. The power behind it… sublime.

Still, the punch had hurt him. A lot. And because of his forgetfulness, the Bull Prime ended up facing issues in trying to sleep the night before, either because of the soreness or because of the memories that furious fist slamming on his face had triggered.

None were pleasant as the main theme was around the first encounters with the stubborn human. At the time Matt had been younger, weaker, and less inclined to start fights if it was possible to avoid them.

His main priority had been to keep everyone in his group safe. To avoid unneeded risks that could’ve delayed their main mission.

But now that there was no mission to uphold or a group to keep a watch over?

Matt was unrestrained by any ulterior situations. He wasn’t limited by other tasks, he didn’t have to protect anyone. And with no outlet to let out that aggressiveness, Minos quickly became the prime target for vindication because of his bulky and tall appearance.

Even now, as he sat on the couch, the Bull Prime couldn’t help but groan at the aching pain coming from his nose. That hook had been rather unforgiving, and this was the first time he had obtained an injury of this caliber in centuries.

He didn’t go soft. His training had been the same, if not more refined, to keep his body prepared to face challenges akin to those he had faced back in the War… but nobody had landed this much damage in a single hit in a long time now.

Which is why, despite his high pain tolerance, Minos still brooded in his house, trying to think how he should address the issue that he had indirectly caused. Part of him wanted to contact someone else and ask for advice.

He was tempted to try and strike a conversation with Carmesi about the matter. She was tolerable in most situations, only growing irritated at the mention of the Ravenhurst family. But the brunet was unsure how using any ‘hypothetical’ scenarios about the Grand Knight could’ve ended well for him.

The Fox Prime was a prideful woman. Someone that lived by the mantra of ‘the Strong consume the Weak’ in a normal circumstance. But that wasn’t always the case. There was a time when the Crest of Fire had been happier with ‘waddling among the weaklings’.

A time when she had reason to be nice to those around her.

…

That time had burned out fairly quickly when Matt ‘disappeared’. Carmesi took that hit with a scowl and a shrug, but everyone could tell, even back then, that she was holding back her real reaction without saying much of a word about it.

Howl had eventually married her. The two had struck a strong relationship out of their commitment to the war and… one could say that their romantic bond was connected to the ‘subtle’ attempts from a ‘cheeky knight’.

Still, the very idea of contacting the fellow Crest didn’t sit well in his stomach. The woman was incredibly difficult to speak to, especially with how busy her schedule was during the early months of the year.

With that choice no longer usable, there was another individual that would certainly know more about Matt’s own moments of anger and… how to approach him without escalating the situation even further.

Activating the device and sitting back on the couch, Minos made a small prayer to the Gods that the one that was going to answer wasn’t going to be her. As much he would like to ask Grace about this matter, it wouldn’t have gone well for him if she saw his bandages.

He waited tensely as the communication device activated. Soon contact was established and… he was met with a pair of pink eyes looking at him from the other side.

Panic swelling up in his chest, Minos’ worries melted away as he realized that it wasn’t the Crest of Love on the other side of the call.

“Joy, good morning.”

The girl smiled. “Good morning, uncle Minos,” She greeted back with a nod. Then froze up at the sight of his bandages. “Uncle, what happened to your nose?”

There was a hint of amusement in that question, and he sighed.

“Let’s just say your clumsy uncle discovered that tripping down a flight of stairs isn’t a fun activity.”

Joy giggled at that joke, but soon she sobered up as curiosity replaced mirthfulness.

“Do you want me to call mom?” She asked with a calm look. “She was finishing repainting the doorstep at the entrance-”

“Actually, Joy- I need to speak to your father about something important,” The Bull Prime interjected with a serious voice. The girl instantly tensed up at the request, frowning at the sudden comment.

“But not Mom?”

“It’s… complicated. Just don’t tell her that it’s me and, if she asks, say that I’m a technician that wanted to talk with one of your parents.”

It wasn’t too odd for societies to call around to offer promotional deals, and he really didn’t need for Grace to grow suspicious of any secret talk between her husband and him. Especially with the kind of topic he was meant to discuss with Kayin.

“Okay and… can I stay and listen?”

Should she? The topic itself wasn’t much taboo, but would it be correct if she learned about the Grand Knight?

He sighed. “If your father agrees, then I see no issue for you to keep around.”

She nodded, a bigger smile replacing the previous one as she swiftly ran away from the communication array to find her father.

A few seconds later, a confused Coyote Prime paused at the sight of Minos’ broken nose.

Then he snorted. “Don’t tell me. It had to have been a trip down at least three floors.”

“Kayin, I really don’t-”

“I mean, I understand being afraid of telling Grace about this. But why do you need to tell me first about it-”

“It’s not about the nose,” Minos answered, irritation growing behind his voice. “I need your help in getting some facts straight and… it’s about someone that I don’t wish to mention to Grace.”

…

Green eyes narrowed at the Bull Prime as he said those words.

“Considering the fact that there is only a single topic that nobody would want to bring up in front of her, I just want to ask… why?”

“It’s something that Ambar was asking to be two days ago,” The brunet quickly lied. “It’s about something about _him_ that didn’t make sense to me when she first talked about the War.”

“Who?” Joy inquired quietly, her eyes were brimming with interest at the secretive tone adopted by both adults.

Kayin glanced at his daughter with a small grimace… but sighed.

“Someone that was a close friend to us… and is no longer here,” The Dragon Knight replied with a soft tone.

Minos almost flinched at that answer, a quick correction stopping by his tongue before he made ‘that’ mistake. Not with the chance of Grace coming to check in case of any loud outbursts from her husband.

“Oh,” Joy deflated a little bit at that answer. “But… why would you need to bring him up if he isn’t… here anymore, Uncle Minos?”

“It’s correlated to some past experiences we had with him and… about his rare moments of anger.”

“What?” The Coyote Prime frowned again. “Minos, I understand if Ambar had mentioned to you one of the few secrets we had about him but… why would you want to know of the times when he was angry?”

“Consider it a stupid curiosity of mine,” He rebuked without a pause. “I just thought back at the times when he was furious about some of the battles and-”

“Teo isn’t exactly someone I wish to remember for those situations, Minos,” Kayin pressed on with barely veiled nervousness. “Especially when our first encounter was with him mercilessly attacking me.”

And that detail was enough to gain Joy’s attention back at the conversation.

“Attacking you? Dad, if he was your friend then why did your first encounter with him end up like that?”

“There was a misunderstanding happening,” The Dragon Knight answered before stopping for a moment to think about it. “Actually, it was more of a half-misunderstanding.”

“One that almost costed you your life if it hadn’t been for Ambar,” Minos reminded with a sigh. “Seriously, I still don’t understand even now why you went that far against Carmesi.”

“She- She was attacking me while I was holding onto Grace,” The father shot back with an annoyed tone. “I really didn’t have the means to hold back with one of my hands busy.”

“I’m still confused,” The younger Prime commented with a frown. “Why do you want to know about the times this ‘Theo’ was angry?”

Before the Bull had a change to reply, it was Kayin to respond.

“Theo was someone that hardly got angry about anything. Terribly patient, it was almost infuriating at times but he was a good diplomat whenever possible,” Her father answered. “As the Grand Knight, it was quite impressive to see him retaliate against his foes and… at the time, I had been one to him.”

“A mistaken foe at that. You had already turned away from the Emperor’s cause when you arrived to Earth.”

That very development had been one of the worst news he could’ve received at the time. Kayin was a powerful warrior, and one of the few Primes that was capable of drawing power through Chaos. An asset that had been as valuable to keep as it had been to hunt down and destroy when the Coyote had surrendered to the Rebellion.

“What’s a… Grand Knight?”

They both stopped for a moment, looking at Joy as the girl looked… excited about the term. There was no doubt in their respective minds that she was correlating the title to something a Knight could achieve nowadays.

“It was a special title that was established when the former Queen of Prism decided to bestow his daughter and heiress with a grand hero to serve as her protector,” Kayin started to explain to his daughter. “Teo was the one chosen by the Gods to always stay by our Queen’s side. He wasn’t powerful at first and… what made him into the legend that is nowadays known by many other knights is that he made the greatest pilgrimage possible.”

“He traveled through worlds,” Minos continued with a sigh. “Ending up exploring part of the galaxy as he made way with his group right to Earth.”

“I thought that space-travel was limited,” The girl blurted out with a surprised voice. “I mean, didn’t mom say that the High Prime didn’t want to focus on space until ‘things are properly settled’?”

“That’s correct,” The Bull Prime quickly answered. “But while today, the chances of exploring the ‘final’ frontier are close to zero, back when the War was still happening it was common for our race to make use of spaceships.”

“That… sounds so cool!”

Kayin chuckled. “It’s kind of amusing now to think that he too said something like that multiple times. He used to be quite… childish when he wanted to.”

“Hey,” Joy huffed at that indirect jab at her. “I’m not childish.”

Minos almost snorted at that. The more he stared at his niece, the more he could see a reflection of what Matt was.

A naive young man with a brighter outlook at life, and a cast of friends that was incredibly chaotic… but amazing. Then life itself took it upon itself to change that and here was the current mess the Bull was partly responsible for.

“Returning to the question, I wanted to know how Teo would calm down from these rare moments,” The brunet asked with a fascinated tone. “I’ve always thought it was the Queen, but Ambar mentioned that someone else that could do that.”

“Oh?” Kayin seemed to think about it with a confused look. “I mean, there was Grace; I think Geecku was also capable of doing that- but I think the best choice was shared between the Queen and Carmesi. Both were the ones that knew him the most and he trusted them both equally.”

Which meant that the situation wasn’t solvable considering that he couldn’t just ask one of those to- Wait.

“Geecku could actually calm him?”

The Dragon Knight shrugged. “I’m not sure, but I think we can both say for certain that he had a soft spot for her. I wouldn’t be surprised if she could’ve been able to accomplish that too.”

Now that meant that he had to call Ambar to get in contact with the Crest of Life. And that was going to be another awkward situation to explain, since his bandages were going to make some of the worst teasing possible out of the Bear Prime.

“That’s… good to know.”

“Yeah, but about that- since I’ve answered to you, how about you tell me who punched you?”

...Oh. That’s… that was quite sudden.

“I just tripped-”

“Minos, you’re the Crest of Earth. Tripping down the stairs shouldn’t hurt you this much,” Kayin pressed on with some interest. “Plus, the damaged area is way too focused on your nose, and that’s quite difficult to achieve as the only injury you could receive from tripping down some stairs.”

And now his cover had been blown to pieces. Even Joy looked intrigued by the matter and was staring intensely at him.

“It’s… complicated.”

“If you want, I can bring Grace here. I’m sure she can unravel whatever this ‘complicated matter’ is if-”

“Don’t,” Minos interjected tensely, taking a moment to sigh. “I want you both to promise me you’re never going to mention this to her. I… it wouldn’t go well for anyone if she discovered this.”

There was no other way around with the pressure exerted by the Dragon Knight. Plus it wouldn’t be convenient to keep any longer that crucial secret to only himself.

Thus, as the two nodded at his request, Minos started to explain what was truly going on.

_**But while the trio continued with their important discussion, an unaware Grace suddenly froze as she happily continued with her painting job. She shivered, knowing that something strange was happening as she was busy. And why was this sensation feeling so oddly familiar to her?** _

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**AN**

**Seven more chapters- things are intensifying and…**

…

… **?**

_**Hmm? Is there something wrong?** _

**Not… truly. Ambar, are you alright?**

_**I’m actually happy. Why do you ask?** _

**Well, you’ve been staring at the table for some time now and you’ve been giggling from time to time.**

_**Oh? Oh! That is- Well, that’s actually awkward to explain. Hmm, let’s just say that tomorrow’s going to be a fun day.** _

**...Why?**

_**Nothing! Absolutely nothing that concerns you… (Not).** _

**What was that?**

_**Nothing~!** _

  
  



	24. Astronomical Crescendo

**Chapter 24: Astronomical Crescendo**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

“Are you sure you’ve got everything written down?”

Glancing at Diana with a small smile, I offered her a nod as I patted the pants’ pocket where I had left the list Randal had given me.

“I have everything,” I replied, staring back at her with a positive look.

She huffed. “Then why are you still here? Shouldn’t you get going?”

“Is my presence that unbearable?” I snarked back, hiding some sarcasm as the Cow Prime regaled me with a frown.

“As if I would grow tired of your yapping,” Diana mirthfully rebuked. “But I think you shouldn’t be wasting time on me.”

“I think I still will.”

She shook her head, a smile still there to disprove any annoyance at my cheeky response.

“Of course. I would be surprised if you actually listened to this dying moron.”

I tensed up at that comment, and I sighed. “Diana-”

“You want to help me. Whatever delayed the inevitable… it came from you,” The woman said tiredly. “But I don’t want you to headbutt too much about it. Trying to rush the recovery isn’t going to do me well, isn’t it?”

I hummed. “Maybe it would.”

“You can think and hope as much as you want, Mattia,” She commented quietly. “But for now, the situation is as such.”

Grimacing at that defeated tone, I took a couple of steps to get closer to the bed. Diana stared at me, not questioning my approach but raised a fascinated eyebrow over my silent action.

“Is there anything you wish to tell me, or do you just want to ogle me more?”

I blinked, sighing tiredly but hinting at a more personal conversation by leaning on the wall and glancing at her with an impassive glance.

She tensed up a little at the sudden change of mood, but she remained quiet as I prepared to talk to her about something that had been consuming me for a while now. Something that had to do with the cloudy creature I had seen back while dealing with her.

“Diana, do you hear voices?”

…

Blinking in surprise at that unexpected question, her green eyes showed several emotions flashing in her mind… but she ultimately settled for amusement.

“I might be dying, but I’m not going senile,” The Prime answered with an annoyed tone. “That’s truly silly if you consider-”

“I’m not joking,” I interjected, not willing to spare too much in her reluctance. I couldn’t just afford keeping up with the dumb act. Something told me that she did hear his voice more than once. She had to.

Instead of keeping up with the facade, the Cow Prime offered a long sigh and… a nod.

There was silence for some time, but she soon spoke up.

“I’ve been hearing this voice for years now,” Diana confessed. “At first it was muffled. Then, as my age advanced, so did the clearness I had of those whispers.”

…

“Do you know why?” I inquired quietly, only for her to huff.

“Not… truly,” She replied slowly. “I know that it’s connected to the taint, and that all Narakhans can hear him. But I can’t say for sure if it’s… Chaos or the Emperor.”

… “What?”

She looked back at me, having been lulled in a distracted look directed at her sheets. “You mean you don’t know about the debate about the Narakhan’s corruption?”

Since the only person I’ve had to teach me about their culture was Minos, and it was specifically centered around her sickness, I didn’t have a good grasp over what she was alluding to.

“I’m pretty clueless about it. What is it about?”

“It’s been a dilemma that has existed since the creation of Neo-Earth,” Diana started to explain. “When the Narakhans were divided in tribes and spread in various distant settlements, the High Prime brought up the fact that some still heard… voices. Voices that advocated for violence and disharmony against Primes and Humans. The voices wanted chaos and only chaos.”

I nodded at that, listening carefully and thoroughly as she went on with more words about the topic.

“The strange thing was that she couldn’t decipher the one that was causing this large-scale passive mind-control, which was pretty odd considering how her Crest is supposed to have a powerful grasp over a mind’s inner working,” The Cow Prime continued. “And made it clear that whoever was/still is behind this phenomenon is well aware of the limits to Lady Ambar’s Crest.”

Which is saying a lot, considering that a Crest is just a step behind actual Godhood.

There is a reason why the Emperor had legitimately hunted down the Crests before they had a chance of meeting on Earth and banding together against him, and that was connected to the plane of existence where the Dragon Gods supposedly ruled over Primes… and humans.

I was still unsure why deities would be afraid of someone mortal but… then again, taking the final boss down required all the Crests combined for one last attack.

“So it’s either a force that can’t be explained, but generalizes the true intents of the taint, which is Chaos itself,” I suggested with a careful tone, still unsure myself of this entire reasoning. “Or the one behind the marks themselves. Which was the Emperor.”

Diana nodded. “That’s indeed the main conundrum behind Narakhan Culture. Some still have trouble adapting in modern society because the whispering just disrupts any attempt to attain true calm in their lives,” She conceded with a smile. “Which is why, right now, I do still hear some unflattering voices throwing unflattering words right at you.”

That sounds rather… ominous. And I had faced various implicit threats in my career as a photographer.

This situation I was going through just offered more questions than answers.

“Specifically at me?”

She nodded and I thought more about it. So I was correct to think that the faceless being I had faced a while ago was influencing Diana- but it was also influencing the rest of the Narakhans at the same time.

It was odd to think that such a being existed, and while Chaos sounded technically correct as something capable of doing something this… extensive, I was genuinely pondering over the chances of it being the Emperor.

But that couldn’t just be. The bastard died centuries ago when the Crests all struck at once at him in a single fight. The battle was so devastating that the entirety of Old Earth was destroyed after that final conflict.

The body was erased and so his soul.

“I suppose those soothe down while I’m not around.”

The woman hesitated at giving me an answer at my supposition, but she begrudgingly offered a long nod at me.

I sighed. “I suppose I should get going-”

“Matt, I want you to do me a favor while you’re out,” Diana quipped in before I had a chance to walk away for the door. “There is something I wish for you to do while you’re in town.”

Blinking, I turned at her with a quizzical look.

“I’ve been thinking about your own situation and… I think I have an idea that might help you remember more about your past,” She admitted quietly. “By the local library, there should be a couple of copies of the ‘Magno Exploratione’.”

“The what?” I asked calmly, my frown deepening as I felt something familiar tingling at that strange Latin title.

“It’s a book I’ve read a few times when I was younger. An endearing commentary over space exploration, right before the conclusion of the War,” The Prime explained with a happy tone. “I think that the tome might contain what you seek.”

I nodded, but she wasn’t done yet as she let out a frustrated sigh.

“Matt, I want you to know that the reason why I’m sending you off to fetch yourself that book is… because I don’t know if even alluding to your past might hurt you,” The old woman commented with a sigh. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I think that reading that book might offer you some clarity about it.”

I thought about the reasoning, understanding why she was restraining herself from outright offering suggestions. I had long realized that these headaches- these moments of frailness weren’t caused by some resurgent panic attack. No, it was something connected to my inability to completely grasp at my past.

So I smiled at her, walking up to her bedside and, as she offered me a confused look, leaned down to pull her in a calm hug. Diana didn’t tense up at my action, and I could feel her arms almost grasping desperately as she rested her chin by my shoulder.

“Thank you,” I muttered, my tone finally letting out the melancholic emotion that still persisted in my heart. “For everything.”

She snorted softly, nuzzling at my neck. “Don’t thank me… a mother should always aid their own children.”

I blinked at that, but I didn’t depart out of that embrace at that quiet proclamation.

Instead of being afraid of these words, I just lessened my uneasiness over that idea, as I was so afraid of losing my family once again.

I sighed. “Mom, I’m sorry that-”

“Don’t apologize for something beyond your own abilities,” Diana quickly chided, but her tone wasn’t as stern as the words would demand. In fact, she almost looked even happier about my interrupted words. “I know you’re trying your best, and that you’re unsure on how to help… but your presence here is… more than enough.”

…

It just felt so… familiar. Almost nostalgic.

I restrained a sob, and for a moment, I saw Diana’s face switching from her own to someone else. Another mother, but she wasn’t someone I hadn’t known for long. But that smile, that hopeless smirk before certain doom…

Someone was sobbing, but it wasn’t me. The pitch… it was nostalgic.

And I wasn’t in that hug. I was… staring from afar, uncertain. I was distraught as the bitter taste of failure enveloped the entirety of my core.

A cry, a sob, a promise broken, a promise remade.

I felt my breathing itching in my lungs… but I found myself once more in that unforgivably cruel embrace. It felt so nice, but it was meant to represent one of the last memories of the one in front of me.

So I treasured it, knowing to go forward.

‘ _**Because if we don’t learn to go forward, then we can’t make those that have been left behind proud of their sacrifices.’** _

So I squeezed her a little more tightly, not enough to put a strain in the Prime’s weak body.

“ _Mom, don’t… go_.”

My words, her words. Our words, our past, our former bond, our current bond.

She sighed, patting my back before caressing behind my head.

“I will not leave you. Not even when I’m gone,” She assured, and I could feel something echoing from within myself. It was forgotten, but now it was lingering and stiffening my sense of remembrance.

I had heard those words before. But where or when… I couldn’t tell.

The hug continued for a little longer, with both finding peace and relief out of that small gesture. I saluted her with a silent wave, but we both smiled as I went out of her room.

Once I was out of there, the oppressive atmosphere of the house- the one created by the crude reality of Diana’s situation, started to asphyxiate me once again.

But instead of wallowing in that dreadful setting, I proceeded to salute both Randal and Alej, quickly venturing out of the farm and right on the path that led to town.

_**I had a book to find, and I had answers that waited for me to be taken.** _

\-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d---------

I decided to visit the library first and foremost. While I still had groceries as my priority for today’s trip in the nearby settlement, I knew that I would end up barred from entering the place if I had tried to do so while holding bags filled with food and other resources.

Which is why I now found myself browsing around the various aisles of this building. The old librarian offered me a kind smile and some directions to where the copies might be within the place, but not before informing me that there was a chance that all of those had already been taken by some of the young folk that had left for Prism University.

The book was considered one of the best ways to properly study ‘Galactic History’, one of the advanced subjects that was taught in that high-level college, so it wouldn’t be unusual for it to be currently unavailable.

Still, I decided to not stop at the uncertainty and delve deep in that vast array of tomes that just waited to be searched through by me. And I went for a while, one that ended up with me grasping at few illegible tomes that ended up not being what I was looking for.

With my irritation building up at the frustrating lack of good results, I took a moment to actually read some of the thin novels available there. Some were good fictions, but the large majority was made up of various retelling of what had happened centuries ago.

There was also one dedicated to the Linda family, and how Maria Linda, the first known ancestor to Diana and Mora, had been one of the first farmers to settle down in Gossamer and leave a brilliant legacy at her passing.

But while I was glad to have found so many books offering vast amounts of interesting information, I still huffed at the lack of success regarding my main reason to be there.

With the idea that the copies had already been sold to other people, I tried to see if I could do something with my phone. It was pretty advanced compared to my broken device, so I wasn’t surprised that I could easily access one of the several websites dedicated in book-selling and search for the tomes there.

It would delay my chances of getting to read it by a long time, but I was at least having the chance of doing so.

But while searching for the proper page within the site was easy, accessing it proved to be… impossible. And it wasn’t something correlated to paying methods or addresses, but rather… the fact I couldn’t actually access it.

I tried to check on other websites, and I soon noticed that the situation would happen in all of them. Other items could be accessed, but the pages detailing the selling of this specific book were rendered ‘unavailable’ by the system.

The more I tried in that regard, the more I had a silent suspicion that things were far more sinister and annoying than just a ‘coincidence’. Which is why I ended up checking thorough the device for anything mentioning permissions and… I got an unpleasant wake up call when I did find that Ambar had set up some restrictions to my capacity to do stuff through the internet.

And there was a disturbing list of websites that were saved as ‘Favorites’ that weren’t just meant for kids. It was a well-rounded list and… maybe I could check on some of those when I got free time and… I wasn’t dealing with that situation.

I really need to return back on the issue at hand. And I didn’t have any means to achieve that considering I was stuck without chances of getting hold of this book. Goddammit.

Just as I thought about any other ways I could’ve tried to get hold of the book, I noticed something unusual happening right by the entrance.

Two individuals wandered around before making their way toward my table, allowing me to straighten up as I recognized the shorter of the two. The white-haired blue-furred Cat Prime wearing a light-gray trench coat seemed busy talking with the Nano-Zell spirit talking to him. The young lady lost in the discussion and noticing just when I spoke up where her ‘owner’ was taking her to.

“Mr. Mayor,” I politely nodded his way. The dude smiled at me and nodded back as he promptly got closer to where I was sitting.

“Mr. Newcastle, our lovely town’s unique human and farmhand at Las Lindas,” The man offered a quick bow as he spoke back to me. “I wasn’t expecting to find you here today, especially with how… concerning the situation is at the farm.”

I tensed up at this. It might sound quite hypocritical and unpleasant if I just said that it was a business for myself. “Mrs. Linda asked me to find a specific book. She said that I could find copies here but there’s nothing here.”

“I suppose it has to be a highly-searched tome for it to not be there,” The Mayor hummed with some surprise and interest. “The library, albeit old, is still getting furbished on a monthly basis, and there are new copies for each of the tomes listed there every time that period arrives.”

“I’ve heard it’s quite difficult to find because many students acquire it at Prism Uni,” I pointed out. “I think the title was ‘Magno Exploratione’ or something like that.”

“Oh? You’re referring to the De Magno Exploratione. That is indeed a beloved piece of old Earth Literature, the last tome to be released of that literary period in fact,” The Prime spoke highly of the book. “It was one of the few ones that endeared me in literature itself as… it contained a mix of proper commentary of galaxy-wide explorations while also presenting the plight of a love-stricken author.”

“Is that… so?” I inquired slowly, surprised that it was more than just a recollection of summaries about the various planets visited by this guy across the galaxy.

Maybe there was some more reason why a ‘flight journal’ like this one was getting so much attention despite how old it was.

It sounded like it had been similar to the Divine Comedy- heck, even one of the old Greek stories like the Iliad, the Odyssey or even the Roman Aeneid to be remembered for so long… and lose none of its popular grip. But instead of mythology, we were talking about something that had indeed happened.

It was a monumental piece if it truly contained the memoirs of a crew invested in exploring uncharted space and the planets all around.

“It’s quite a fun read too. The writer is something of a comedian from time to time, and I can even say without hesitation that he sure loved writing about the various adventures he went through with his crew,” The man continued. “All of them were depicted with nicknames as to protect their identities, and there are numerous theories about whom the author might be talking about.”

I can see how it would get troublesome to adding characters other than himself to the story-telling. People tend to hunt down relatives of these people and ask them stupid questions about their knowledge of their ancestors’ past doings. It was easy to see that the writer saw the need of avoiding any unwanted attention to be directed at the people he commanded and those close to them.

Quite an admirable consideration considering the arduous times this trip had to have happened by.

“Not gonna lie, Mr. Mayor, but this has me more interested in the book. Kind of a pity that it’s not available,” I muttered with a small grimace, but the Prime seemed to smile even more before shaking his head.

“Fret not, Mr. Newcastle. If it’s for Diana, then I can offer my spare copy to her,” The short man assured, turning to the Nano-Zell Spirit standing beside him. I had given little attention to the clearly-taller ‘young woman’. The living construct was smiling calmly and politely, but I could see that her attention was over me for some reason.

Still, she seemed to turn at her ‘owner’ when the Mayor looked right at her.

“Athena, can you be a darling and teleport the spare copy?”

The spirit nodded, and a soft glow suddenly appeared by her open palm as she brought those together. It was a quick process, and I found myself staring at an incredibly thick book with a couple of drawings all over the cover.

At first I thought that it was the resulting deed of a child having handled the tome, but then I noticed that some of the doodles were just… familiar.

The book was finally tilted to show its front and… I found myself staring silently at the curious drawing there.

Three tiny stickmen huddling together, a small bonfire in front of them.

_I remember the draining toll of a difficult deed that saw me risking everything, and the pleasant relief in being in a safe place away from danger. I was scribbling, doodling, a small smile on my face as I went through that simple work._

I blinked awake, my stare returned to reality after what had felt like the oddest development possible.

“Mr. Mayor… surely I can spare you some coin for the kind gesture-”

“Nonsense, young fellow,” The Prime interjected sternly. “Your hard-work and your contribution to the town’s activity by buying from its shops are what makes this worth. Don’t spend further than what you need to pay, for this place shouldn’t be a fiscal hell for anyone seeking fortune and a good legacy to settle their own family with.”

“Mayor is also endeared by the legacy left behind Maria Linda,” Athena added with a quick nod, drawing a surprised look out of the guy. “Diana Linda managed to keep up with Maria Linda’s shadow and for that she has the deepest gratitude from our humble settlement.”

“I guess I will mention this to her. She would surely love to hear that her hardwork was noticed by the town,” I commented back, drawing pleased reactions out of both individuals.

“That’s good to hear, and please… do keep a firm and kind watch over that lady,” The mayor hummed happily. “I know she can be rather fiery, and if I know something about Doña Linda is that she can get quite stubborn about certain situations and we want only the best for her.”

I nodded, standing up and saluting both as I decided that it was about time I started to focus on my next task. I still had to buy groceries, medicines, and other stuff needed back at the farm, and I didn’t have the luxury of time to just linger any further with that conversation.

But just as I stopped by the entrance to check at the book, I felt a deep frown spreading over my face.

This… this felt heavier than it normally was in my hands. Something about it, preceded by the drawings that I was way too familiar with, just said that I had a hand in making it.

But how… how was it even possible? And why?

I sighed, finally stepping outside and shifting my attention back at finding the stores I needed to visit before getting back at the house.

 **The day was still long, and I was sure going to read this big boy once I was done with groceries** _**AND** _ **work.**

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A few hours later (and after I was done putting the numerous things I had bought during my groceries trip around the proper places within the house), I found myself wandering by the apple orchard once more.

The place was quite the happy heaven to be spending time about and… I could see why Randal was so forceful over the fact I would need to focus in there most of the time. The area was closer to the house compared to the fields, and in case I was needed for an emergency I would be easier to find in there.

I didn’t complain about the decision, actually preferring to be in a place like this instead of growing more frustrated with my previous assignments.

Picking apples off their tree’s branches was by no mean an easy job considering the full extent of the orchard, but the activity wasn’t as draining and tiring as working on the fields.

Humming quietly as I finished filling up the second basket with the red juicy fruits, I found myself wandering away with my mind over the comments I had received from the mayor about the book that was now in my possession and the words that Randal himself had decided to spare about it.

The tome seemed to be loved by a vast majority of Primes. Not only was it considered as the main cornerstone of main literature, but it was what opened up Primekind to the Sci-Fi genre.

Up until the release of the volume, the Primes were vastly limited in terms of literature, and while Human one was considered a good basis to elaborate a modern degree of genres, it was the book that steered the path for what is considered one of the most renowned genres in the Newer Continent.

The idea of traveling around the galaxy, making friends and foes alike? Just like humanity was hooked at things like Star Wars, Star Trek and other major Sci-Fi movies and TV-Series, the new species was quick to follow up with the same admiration and endearment to the theme.

But while I was surprised by these new revelations over the thick book that I was getting more and more enticed to read, I still had the unending sensation that it was going to be an experience far different than what I expected it to be.

I sighed as I settled another basket, taking a moment to evaluate the current apple situation before going on with the remaining baskets.

There were at least thirty trees that still needed my attention, and I had to make sure that the fruits matched comfortably with the limited number of crates meant for those.

I huffed as I stood up from the patch of grass I’ve been sitting by, preparing myself for another hour of hard-working… when I paused at the unexpected buzzing coming from my phone.

Frowning, I picked it up and… I blinked at the number displayed there.

Naerie?

Could it be that she had noticed my snooping and was checking if ‘things were fine’?

Or maybe it was Ambar calling through it to try and force me in a conversation I wasn’t ready to have. Who knows what Minos had told them after that hook I had landed right on his nose. Both scenarios were far from idyllic for me and I braced for each. Hopefully, things weren’t going to be too difficult to swerve around and cause any unwanted suspicions to rise in the two women.

But just as I accepted the call, I was greeted by a chirpy and loud greeting.

“ **MATTY!** ”

I flinched, managing a twitchy smile at that familiar voice.

“Hello Geecku.”

A giggle left from the other side of the call.

“ **I miss you!** ” The Lizard Prime admitted without hesitation. “ **You miss me?** ”

“I really did,” I muttered with a bright smile. If there was someone I couldn’t deny a conversation right now, it was the overly-friendly girl. “By the way, are you enjoying the apples? Ambar told me that the order went through.”

“ **Uhuh! Apples are delicious,** ” Geecku answered readily. “ **Ambar says that I’m nice, so I can call you.** ”

“Good to know, I bet you were lonely up until now,” I hummed, my attention switching at the apples now in front of me. I had the phone set by my shoulder, while my ear was leaning down to it so it wouldn’t fall.

“ **I say I miss you! And I really, really wanna talk.** ”

“Really?” I inquired with some surprise. “What did you want to talk about?”

“ **I wanna ask you think of clothes,** ” She explained in her broken English. “ **I no like ‘em.** ”

...What?

I paused for a moment as I tried to understand what the girl was talking about… but then I got a distinct idea of what she was referring to.

“You don’t like wearing clothes?”

“ **Yeah,** ” She replied quickly. “ **Why need of clothes when it’s just for warmth. Why no hugging or more?** ”

“I think… it’s more of a social standard. It’s a rule adopted by everyone,” I tried to explain. It was going to be difficult to make myself clear to someone that didn’t seem to have much grasp over how modern society worked. “When everyone is naked, people generally direct looks at some bits that… can be considered private. Some enjoy that kind of attention, while others just don’t. And they get uncomfortable and unhappy about it.”

But while I had thought it would’ve been a mess to make it clear what I was talking about, this explanation came out so fluently and so fluidly. It was as if I had already told someone like her about this.

“ **Oh- Oh!! I remember, Geecku remembers,** ” She giggled while seemingly ‘remembering’ this from somewhere else. “ **You say this to Geecku before.** ”

...Did I?

I couldn’t exactly remember. Last conversation was about working and apples… and that was the only time I was talking to Geecku on a private situation. And I would’ve remembered something like this happening considering the topic brought up in that moment.

…

Could it be a connection to my past memories of her? Maybe I did have a discussion to her past self about it…

“I suppose I… did?”

“ **You ‘did’** ,” She said with some effort, as if trying to match up with my level of talking. “ **You say- said that I need treating people nice. Like I want people to treat Geecku nice too.** ”

I nodded at that logic. It sounded… something like I would say to someone like Geecku. But really, when did that happen?

“I suppose it can be tough to ignore that. Boredom can be annoying to deal with,” I suggested, getting a huff from the other said of the call.

“ **Yes. Boredom is bad. Which is why I play a lot with Ambar. She’s** _**mostly** _ **nice,** ” Geecku commented. “ **But I would like to play with Naerie too.** ”

“Does she want to play with you?”

There was silence at first, and I knew that the girl was just trying to hold back from huffing at my question.

“ **No.** ”

“If she doesn’t want to, it wouldn’t be nice to force her to play. Because it wouldn’t be a fair game, wouldn’t it?”

“ **Uhuh! I would… I wanna play with Matt.** ”

I sighed at that comment, taking a brief pause to settle the fourth basket down.

“Sadly, I’m not there to play with you,” I muttered with a sad tone. “But if I were, we would probably play hide n’ seek, or tag.”

“ **Those sounds nice. I like seeking!** ” She giggled again. “ **Geecku is best predator.** ”

“And sounds like a cute one too.”

“ **My buddy says that too,** ” The Lizard Prime muttered distractedly. “ **My buddy also says that I can be naughty with others and that’s not nice.** ”

“Well, your buddy is probably right considering how you took Naerie’s phone without her permission last time.”

“ **But I naughty because I poke lots to Carmie, and Carmie get angry at that,** ” She ignored my words, focusing on ‘Carmie’ and about being naughty. “ **She want to kick me out. But buddy’s nice and let me stay. But I behave nice for him because he’s nice to me.** ”

“That’s… good to hear. Still, you shouldn’t make people angry because it’s fun,” I chided softly. “People tend to get hurt a lot when they get angry. That’s why moderation is the nicest thing to do.”

“ **I know. Buddy tell me too,** ” She hummed happily. “ **But I end up waking up Addie. And Addie is mad… and sad. Mostly sad.** ”

I sighed. “Geecku, Addie does need her rest. You know what she thinks about early mornings.”

“ **Which is why I like sleeping with buddy. Buddy is super-nice.** ”

“Oh? Thank you, Geecku.”

“ **You welcome, Buddy.** ”

I felt another smile crawling on my face that was a blunt compliment. It’s still surprising how someone so simple could manage to impress this much emotion with just a couple of adorable expressions and a few words.

…

…

Wait, what just happened there? Did she just call me ‘Buddy’ and… who is Addie?

“Geecku, did you just call me-”

“ **Matty! I like Matty!** ” She suddenly exclaimed and I slowly eased at the fact I was just getting confused over the ‘Matty’ ‘Buddy’ similarities. I sighed, taking a moment to lean by the closest tree.

“That’s nice to know.”

Maybe I was starting to get too stressed up with what was happening and I was just hearing things now.

“ **I need to go. Ambar says I talk to her,** ” The Lizard Prime announced without warning, huffing in annoyance. “ **See you later, Buddy**.”

The call ended there, but I stood quiet while staring at the silent phone. My eyes were wide open and my brain was well directing its full attention at the last words I heard from the girl.

She did call me buddy and…

_**Who is Addie?** _

\---------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d---------

**AN**

_**It’s quite interesting how you always end up bringing up Latin… despite the fact you said that you hate it.** _

**It’s a Love-Hate relationship. I like how history and literature work… but I would like to delve deep in that lore on my own rather than getting whipped by good or bad grades (especially bad ones).**

_**I suppose it can be quite… stressing. Still, six more chapters and I’m sure things are going to get spicier. Do you think it will end on a happier note than in the original Timeline?** _

**Kind of? I don’t know. Maybe. Mora shouldn’t be technically coming as in canon she learned of her mother’s passing after the event has happened… so who knows. Who knows…**

**REVIEW Q &A! ( _With Lady Ambar~!_ ) **

**GrayZS** **:**

**There’s a lot of potential within the lore, the story and the character. I’m kind of happy that I managed to draw a decent story out of it without disappointing readers.**

_**You did alright, dearie… and I’m the kind reader’s favorite? Of course! I’m just a lovable bear~!** _

**That can sometimes screw with people minds through meddling and pranking.**

_**It’s boring to rule without messing up with people! You’ve seen the paperwork, and the paperwork… did I mention the paperwork.** _

**You did. Three times.**

**Chapter 24: Astronomical Crescendo**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

“Are you sure you’ve got everything written down?”

Glancing at Diana with a small smile, I offered her a nod as I patted the pants’ pocket where I had left the list Randal had given me.

“I have everything,” I replied, staring back at her with a positive look.

She huffed. “Then why are you still here? Shouldn’t you get going?”

“Is my presence that unbearable?” I snarked back, hiding some sarcasm as the Cow Prime regaled me with a frown.

“As if I would grow tired of your yapping,” Diana mirthfully rebuked. “But I think you shouldn’t be wasting time on me.”

“I think I still will.”

She shook her head, a smile still there to disprove any annoyance at my cheeky response.

“Of course. I would be surprised if you actually listened to this dying moron.”

I tensed up at that comment, and I sighed. “Diana-”

“You want to help me. Whatever delayed the inevitable… it came from you,” The woman said tiredly. “But I don’t want you to headbutt too much about it. Trying to rush the recovery isn’t going to do me well, isn’t it?”

I hummed. “Maybe it would.”

“You can think and hope as much as you want, Mattia,” She commented quietly. “But for now, the situation is as such.”

Grimacing at that defeated tone, I took a couple of steps to get closer to the bed. Diana stared at me, not questioning my approach but raised a fascinated eyebrow over my silent action.

“Is there anything you wish to tell me, or do you just want to ogle me more?”

I blinked, sighing tiredly but hinting at a more personal conversation by leaning on the wall and glancing at her with an impassive glance.

She tensed up a little at the sudden change of mood, but she remained quiet as I prepared to talk to her about something that had been consuming me for a while now. Something that had to do with the cloudy creature I had seen back while dealing with her.

“Diana, do you hear voices?”

…

Blinking in surprise at that unexpected question, her green eyes showed several emotions flashing in her mind… but she ultimately settled for amusement.

“I might be dying, but I’m not going senile,” The Prime answered with an annoyed tone. “That’s truly silly if you consider-”

“I’m not joking,” I interjected, not willing to spare too much in her reluctance. I couldn’t just afford keeping up with the dumb act. Something told me that she did hear his voice more than once. She had to.

Instead of keeping up with the facade, the Cow Prime offered a long sigh and… a nod.

There was silence for some time, but she soon spoke up.

“I’ve been hearing this voice for years now,” Diana confessed. “At first it was muffled. Then, as my age advanced, so did the clearness I had of those whispers.”

…

“Do you know why?” I inquired quietly, only for her to huff.

“Not… truly,” She replied slowly. “I know that it’s connected to the taint, and that all Narakhans can hear him. But I can’t say for sure if it’s… Chaos or the Emperor.”

… “What?”

She looked back at me, having been lulled in a distracted look directed at her sheets. “You mean you don’t know about the debate about the Narakhan’s corruption?”

Since the only person I’ve had to teach me about their culture was Minos, and it was specifically centered around her sickness, I didn’t have a good grasp over what she was alluding to.

“I’m pretty clueless about it. What is it about?”

“It’s been a dilemma that has existed since the creation of Neo-Earth,” Diana started to explain. “When the Narakhans were divided in tribes and spread in various distant settlements, the High Prime brought up the fact that some still heard… voices. Voices that advocated for violence and disharmony against Primes and Humans. The voices wanted chaos and only chaos.”

I nodded at that, listening carefully and thoroughly as she went on with more words about the topic.

“The strange thing was that she couldn’t decipher the one that was causing this large-scale passive mind-control, which was pretty odd considering how her Crest is supposed to have a powerful grasp over a mind’s inner working,” The Cow Prime continued. “And made it clear that whoever was/still is behind this phenomenon is well aware of the limits to Lady Ambar’s Crest.”

Which is saying a lot, considering that a Crest is just a step behind actual Godhood.

There is a reason why the Emperor had legitimately hunted down the Crests before they had a chance of meeting on Earth and banding together against him, and that was connected to the plane of existence where the Dragon Gods supposedly ruled over Primes… and humans.

I was still unsure why deities would be afraid of someone mortal but… then again, taking the final boss down required all the Crests combined for one last attack.

“So it’s either a force that can’t be explained, but generalizes the true intents of the taint, which is Chaos itself,” I suggested with a careful tone, still unsure myself of this entire reasoning. “Or the one behind the marks themselves. Which was the Emperor.”

Diana nodded. “That’s indeed the main conundrum behind Narakhan Culture. Some still have trouble adapting in modern society because the whispering just disrupts any attempt to attain true calm in their lives,” She conceded with a smile. “Which is why, right now, I do still hear some unflattering voices throwing unflattering words right at you.”

That sounds rather… ominous. And I had faced various implicit threats in my career as a photographer.

This situation I was going through just offered more questions than answers.

“Specifically at me?”

She nodded and I thought more about it. So I was correct to think that the faceless being I had faced a while ago was influencing Diana- but it was also influencing the rest of the Narakhans at the same time.

It was odd to think that such a being existed, and while Chaos sounded technically correct as something capable of doing something this… extensive, I was genuinely pondering over the chances of it being the Emperor.

But that couldn’t just be. The bastard died centuries ago when the Crests all struck at once at him in a single fight. The battle was so devastating that the entirety of Old Earth was destroyed after that final conflict.

The body was erased and so his soul.

“I suppose those soothe down while I’m not around.”

The woman hesitated at giving me an answer at my supposition, but she begrudgingly offered a long nod at me.

I sighed. “I suppose I should get going-”

“Matt, I want you to do me a favor while you’re out,” Diana quipped in before I had a chance to walk away for the door. “There is something I wish for you to do while you’re in town.”

Blinking, I turned at her with a quizzical look.

“I’ve been thinking about your own situation and… I think I have an idea that might help you remember more about your past,” She admitted quietly. “By the local library, there should be a couple of copies of the ‘Magno Exploratione’.”

“The what?” I asked calmly, my frown deepening as I felt something familiar tingling at that strange Latin title.

“It’s a book I’ve read a few times when I was younger. An endearing commentary over space exploration, right before the conclusion of the War,” The Prime explained with a happy tone. “I think that the tome might contain what you seek.”

I nodded, but she wasn’t done yet as she let out a frustrated sigh.

“Matt, I want you to know that the reason why I’m sending you off to fetch yourself that book is… because I don’t know if even alluding to your past might hurt you,” The old woman commented with a sigh. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I think that reading that book might offer you some clarity about it.”

I thought about the reasoning, understanding why she was restraining herself from outright offering suggestions. I had long realized that these headaches- these moments of frailness weren’t caused by some resurgent panic attack. No, it was something connected to my inability to completely grasp at my past.

So I smiled at her, walking up to her bedside and, as she offered me a confused look, leaned down to pull her in a calm hug. Diana didn’t tense up at my action, and I could feel her arms almost grasping desperately as she rested her chin by my shoulder.

“Thank you,” I muttered, my tone finally letting out the melancholic emotion that still persisted in my heart. “For everything.”

She snorted softly, nuzzling at my neck. “Don’t thank me… a mother should always aid their own children.”

I blinked at that, but I didn’t depart out of that embrace at that quiet proclamation.

Instead of being afraid of these words, I just lessened my uneasiness over that idea, as I was so afraid of losing my family once again.

I sighed. “Mom, I’m sorry that-”

“Don’t apologize for something beyond your own abilities,” Diana quickly chided, but her tone wasn’t as stern as the words would demand. In fact, she almost looked even happier about my interrupted words. “I know you’re trying your best, and that you’re unsure on how to help… but your presence here is… more than enough.”

…

It just felt so… familiar. Almost nostalgic.

I restrained a sob, and for a moment, I saw Diana’s face switching from her own to someone else. Another mother, but she wasn’t someone I hadn’t known for long. But that smile, that hopeless smirk before certain doom…

Someone was sobbing, but it wasn’t me. The pitch… it was nostalgic.

And I wasn’t in that hug. I was… staring from afar, uncertain. I was distraught as the bitter taste of failure enveloped the entirety of my core.

A cry, a sob, a promise broken, a promise remade.

I felt my breathing itching in my lungs… but I found myself once more in that unforgivably cruel embrace. It felt so nice, but it was meant to represent one of the last memories of the one in front of me.

So I treasured it, knowing to go forward.

‘ _**Because if we don’t learn to go forward, then we can’t make those that have been left behind proud of their sacrifices.’** _

So I squeezed her a little more tightly, not enough to put a strain in the Prime’s weak body.

“ _Mom, don’t… go_.”

My words, her words. Our words, our past, our former bond, our current bond.

She sighed, patting my back before caressing behind my head.

“I will not leave you. Not even when I’m gone,” She assured, and I could feel something echoing from within myself. It was forgotten, but now it was lingering and stiffening my sense of remembrance.

I had heard those words before. But where or when… I couldn’t tell.

The hug continued for a little longer, with both finding peace and relief out of that small gesture. I saluted her with a silent wave, but we both smiled as I went out of her room.

Once I was out of there, the oppressive atmosphere of the house- the one created by the crude reality of Diana’s situation, started to asphyxiate me once again.

But instead of wallowing in that dreadful setting, I proceeded to salute both Randal and Alej, quickly venturing out of the farm and right on the path that led to town.

_**I had a book to find, and I had answers that waited for me to be taken.** _

\-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d---------

I decided to visit the library first and foremost. While I still had groceries as my priority for today’s trip in the nearby settlement, I knew that I would end up barred from entering the place if I had tried to do so while holding bags filled with food and other resources.

Which is why I now found myself browsing around the various aisles of this building. The old librarian offered me a kind smile and some directions to where the copies might be within the place, but not before informing me that there was a chance that all of those had already been taken by some of the young folk that had left for Prism University.

The book was considered one of the best ways to properly study ‘Galactic History’, one of the advanced subjects that was taught in that high-level college, so it wouldn’t be unusual for it to be currently unavailable.

Still, I decided to not stop at the uncertainty and delve deep in that vast array of tomes that just waited to be searched through by me. And I went for a while, one that ended up with me grasping at few illegible tomes that ended up not being what I was looking for.

With my irritation building up at the frustrating lack of good results, I took a moment to actually read some of the thin novels available there. Some were good fictions, but the large majority was made up of various retelling of what had happened centuries ago.

There was also one dedicated to the Linda family, and how Maria Linda, the first known ancestor to Diana and Mora, had been one of the first farmers to settle down in Gossamer and leave a brilliant legacy at her passing.

But while I was glad to have found so many books offering vast amounts of interesting information, I still huffed at the lack of success regarding my main reason to be there.

With the idea that the copies had already been sold to other people, I tried to see if I could do something with my phone. It was pretty advanced compared to my broken device, so I wasn’t surprised that I could easily access one of the several websites dedicated in book-selling and search for the tomes there.

It would delay my chances of getting to read it by a long time, but I was at least having the chance of doing so.

But while searching for the proper page within the site was easy, accessing it proved to be… impossible. And it wasn’t something correlated to paying methods or addresses, but rather… the fact I couldn’t actually access it.

I tried to check on other websites, and I soon noticed that the situation would happen in all of them. Other items could be accessed, but the pages detailing the selling of this specific book were rendered ‘unavailable’ by the system.

The more I tried in that regard, the more I had a silent suspicion that things were far more sinister and annoying than just a ‘coincidence’. Which is why I ended up checking thorough the device for anything mentioning permissions and… I got an unpleasant wake up call when I did find that Ambar had set up some restrictions to my capacity to do stuff through the internet.

And there was a disturbing list of websites that were saved as ‘Favorites’ that weren’t just meant for kids. It was a well-rounded list and… maybe I could check on some of those when I got free time and… I wasn’t dealing with that situation.

I really need to return back on the issue at hand. And I didn’t have any means to achieve that considering I was stuck without chances of getting hold of this book. Goddammit.

Just as I thought about any other ways I could’ve tried to get hold of the book, I noticed something unusual happening right by the entrance.

Two individuals wandered around before making their way toward my table, allowing me to straighten up as I recognized the shorter of the two. The white-haired blue-furred Cat Prime wearing a light-gray trench coat seemed busy talking with the Nano-Zell spirit talking to him. The young lady lost in the discussion and noticing just when I spoke up where her ‘owner’ was taking her to.

“Mr. Mayor,” I politely nodded his way. The dude smiled at me and nodded back as he promptly got closer to where I was sitting.

“Mr. Newcastle, our lovely town’s unique human and farmhand at Las Lindas,” The man offered a quick bow as he spoke back to me. “I wasn’t expecting to find you here today, especially with how… concerning the situation is at the farm.”

I tensed up at this. It might sound quite hypocritical and unpleasant if I just said that it was a business for myself. “Mrs. Linda asked me to find a specific book. She said that I could find copies here but there’s nothing here.”

“I suppose it has to be a highly-searched tome for it to not be there,” The Mayor hummed with some surprise and interest. “The library, albeit old, is still getting furbished on a monthly basis, and there are new copies for each of the tomes listed there every time that period arrives.”

“I’ve heard it’s quite difficult to find because many students acquire it at Prism Uni,” I pointed out. “I think the title was ‘Magno Exploratione’ or something like that.”

“Oh? You’re referring to the De Magno Exploratione. That is indeed a beloved piece of old Earth Literature, the last tome to be released of that literary period in fact,” The Prime spoke highly of the book. “It was one of the few ones that endeared me in literature itself as… it contained a mix of proper commentary of galaxy-wide explorations while also presenting the plight of a love-stricken author.”

“Is that… so?” I inquired slowly, surprised that it was more than just a recollection of summaries about the various planets visited by this guy across the galaxy.

Maybe there was some more reason why a ‘flight journal’ like this one was getting so much attention despite how old it was.

It sounded like it had been similar to the Divine Comedy- heck, even one of the old Greek stories like the Iliad, the Odyssey or even the Roman Aeneid to be remembered for so long… and lose none of its popular grip. But instead of mythology, we were talking about something that had indeed happened.

It was a monumental piece if it truly contained the memoirs of a crew invested in exploring uncharted space and the planets all around.

“It’s quite a fun read too. The writer is something of a comedian from time to time, and I can even say without hesitation that he sure loved writing about the various adventures he went through with his crew,” The man continued. “All of them were depicted with nicknames as to protect their identities, and there are numerous theories about whom the author might be talking about.”

I can see how it would get troublesome to adding characters other than himself to the story-telling. People tend to hunt down relatives of these people and ask them stupid questions about their knowledge of their ancestors’ past doings. It was easy to see that the writer saw the need of avoiding any unwanted attention to be directed at the people he commanded and those close to them.

Quite an admirable consideration considering the arduous times this trip had to have happened by.

“Not gonna lie, Mr. Mayor, but this has me more interested in the book. Kind of a pity that it’s not available,” I muttered with a small grimace, but the Prime seemed to smile even more before shaking his head.

“Fret not, Mr. Newcastle. If it’s for Diana, then I can offer my spare copy to her,” The short man assured, turning to the Nano-Zell Spirit standing beside him. I had given little attention to the clearly-taller ‘young woman’. The living construct was smiling calmly and politely, but I could see that her attention was over me for some reason.

Still, she seemed to turn at her ‘owner’ when the Mayor looked right at her.

“Athena, can you be a darling and teleport the spare copy?”

The spirit nodded, and a soft glow suddenly appeared by her open palm as she brought those together. It was a quick process, and I found myself staring at an incredibly thick book with a couple of drawings all over the cover.

At first I thought that it was the resulting deed of a child having handled the tome, but then I noticed that some of the doodles were just… familiar.

The book was finally tilted to show its front and… I found myself staring silently at the curious drawing there.

Three tiny stickmen huddling together, a small bonfire in front of them.

_I remember the draining toll of a difficult deed that saw me risking everything, and the pleasant relief in being in a safe place away from danger. I was scribbling, doodling, a small smile on my face as I went through that simple work._

I blinked awake, my stare returned to reality after what had felt like the oddest development possible.

“Mr. Mayor… surely I can spare you some coin for the kind gesture-”

“Nonsense, young fellow,” The Prime interjected sternly. “Your hard-work and your contribution to the town’s activity by buying from its shops are what makes this worth. Don’t spend further than what you need to pay, for this place shouldn’t be a fiscal hell for anyone seeking fortune and a good legacy to settle their own family with.”

“Mayor is also endeared by the legacy left behind Maria Linda,” Athena added with a quick nod, drawing a surprised look out of the guy. “Diana Linda managed to keep up with Maria Linda’s shadow and for that she has the deepest gratitude from our humble settlement.”

“I guess I will mention this to her. She would surely love to hear that her hardwork was noticed by the town,” I commented back, drawing pleased reactions out of both individuals.

“That’s good to hear, and please… do keep a firm and kind watch over that lady,” The mayor hummed happily. “I know she can be rather fiery, and if I know something about Doña Linda is that she can get quite stubborn about certain situations and we want only the best for her.”

I nodded, standing up and saluting both as I decided that it was about time I started to focus on my next task. I still had to buy groceries, medicines, and other stuff needed back at the farm, and I didn’t have the luxury of time to just linger any further with that conversation.

But just as I stopped by the entrance to check at the book, I felt a deep frown spreading over my face.

This… this felt heavier than it normally was in my hands. Something about it, preceded by the drawings that I was way too familiar with, just said that I had a hand in making it.

But how… how was it even possible? And why?

I sighed, finally stepping outside and shifting my attention back at finding the stores I needed to visit before getting back at the house.

 **The day was still long, and I was sure going to read this big boy once I was done with groceries** _**AND** _ **work.**

\-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d---------

A few hours later (and after I was done putting the numerous things I had bought during my groceries trip around the proper places within the house), I found myself wandering by the apple orchard once more.

The place was quite the happy heaven to be spending time about and… I could see why Randal was so forceful over the fact I would need to focus in there most of the time. The area was closer to the house compared to the fields, and in case I was needed for an emergency I would be easier to find in there.

I didn’t complain about the decision, actually preferring to be in a place like this instead of growing more frustrated with my previous assignments.

Picking apples off their tree’s branches was by no mean an easy job considering the full extent of the orchard, but the activity wasn’t as draining and tiring as working on the fields.

Humming quietly as I finished filling up the second basket with the red juicy fruits, I found myself wandering away with my mind over the comments I had received from the mayor about the book that was now in my possession and the words that Randal himself had decided to spare about it.

The tome seemed to be loved by a vast majority of Primes. Not only was it considered as the main cornerstone of main literature, but it was what opened up Primekind to the Sci-Fi genre.

Up until the release of the volume, the Primes were vastly limited in terms of literature, and while Human one was considered a good basis to elaborate a modern degree of genres, it was the book that steered the path for what is considered one of the most renowned genres in the Newer Continent.

The idea of traveling around the galaxy, making friends and foes alike? Just like humanity was hooked at things like Star Wars, Star Trek and other major Sci-Fi movies and TV-Series, the new species was quick to follow up with the same admiration and endearment to the theme.

But while I was surprised by these new revelations over the thick book that I was getting more and more enticed to read, I still had the unending sensation that it was going to be an experience far different than what I expected it to be.

I sighed as I settled another basket, taking a moment to evaluate the current apple situation before going on with the remaining baskets.

There were at least thirty trees that still needed my attention, and I had to make sure that the fruits matched comfortably with the limited number of crates meant for those.

I huffed as I stood up from the patch of grass I’ve been sitting by, preparing myself for another hour of hard-working… when I paused at the unexpected buzzing coming from my phone.

Frowning, I picked it up and… I blinked at the number displayed there.

Naerie?

Could it be that she had noticed my snooping and was checking if ‘things were fine’?

Or maybe it was Ambar calling through it to try and force me in a conversation I wasn’t ready to have. Who knows what Minos had told them after that hook I had landed right on his nose. Both scenarios were far from idyllic for me and I braced for each. Hopefully, things weren’t going to be too difficult to swerve around and cause any unwanted suspicions to rise in the two women.

But just as I accepted the call, I was greeted by a chirpy and loud greeting.

“ **MATTY!** ”

I flinched, managing a twitchy smile at that familiar voice.

“Hello Geecku.”

A giggle left from the other side of the call.

“ **I miss you!** ” The Lizard Prime admitted without hesitation. “ **You miss me?** ”

“I really did,” I muttered with a bright smile. If there was someone I couldn’t deny a conversation right now, it was the overly-friendly girl. “By the way, are you enjoying the apples? Ambar told me that the order went through.”

“ **Uhuh! Apples are delicious,** ” Geecku answered readily. “ **Ambar says that I’m nice, so I can call you.** ”

“Good to know, I bet you were lonely up until now,” I hummed, my attention switching at the apples now in front of me. I had the phone set by my shoulder, while my ear was leaning down to it so it wouldn’t fall.

“ **I say I miss you! And I really, really wanna talk.** ”

“Really?” I inquired with some surprise. “What did you want to talk about?”

“ **I wanna ask you think of clothes,** ” She explained in her broken English. “ **I no like ‘em.** ”

...What?

I paused for a moment as I tried to understand what the girl was talking about… but then I got a distinct idea of what she was referring to.

“You don’t like wearing clothes?”

“ **Yeah,** ” She replied quickly. “ **Why need of clothes when it’s just for warmth. Why no hugging or more?** ”

“I think… it’s more of a social standard. It’s a rule adopted by everyone,” I tried to explain. It was going to be difficult to make myself clear to someone that didn’t seem to have much grasp over how modern society worked. “When everyone is naked, people generally direct looks at some bits that… can be considered private. Some enjoy that kind of attention, while others just don’t. And they get uncomfortable and unhappy about it.”

But while I had thought it would’ve been a mess to make it clear what I was talking about, this explanation came out so fluently and so fluidly. It was as if I had already told someone like her about this.

“ **Oh- Oh!! I remember, Geecku remembers,** ” She giggled while seemingly ‘remembering’ this from somewhere else. “ **You say this to Geecku before.** ”

...Did I?

I couldn’t exactly remember. Last conversation was about working and apples… and that was the only time I was talking to Geecku on a private situation. And I would’ve remembered something like this happening considering the topic brought up in that moment.

…

Could it be a connection to my past memories of her? Maybe I did have a discussion to her past self about it…

“I suppose I… did?”

“ **You ‘did’** ,” She said with some effort, as if trying to match up with my level of talking. “ **You say- said that I need treating people nice. Like I want people to treat Geecku nice too.** ”

I nodded at that logic. It sounded… something like I would say to someone like Geecku. But really, when did that happen?

“I suppose it can be tough to ignore that. Boredom can be annoying to deal with,” I suggested, getting a huff from the other said of the call.

“ **Yes. Boredom is bad. Which is why I play a lot with Ambar. She’s** _**mostly** _ **nice,** ” Geecku commented. “ **But I would like to play with Naerie too.** ”

“Does she want to play with you?”

There was silence at first, and I knew that the girl was just trying to hold back from huffing at my question.

“ **No.** ”

“If she doesn’t want to, it wouldn’t be nice to force her to play. Because it wouldn’t be a fair game, wouldn’t it?”

“ **Uhuh! I would… I wanna play with Matt.** ”

I sighed at that comment, taking a brief pause to settle the fourth basket down.

“Sadly, I’m not there to play with you,” I muttered with a sad tone. “But if I were, we would probably play hide n’ seek, or tag.”

“ **Those sounds nice. I like seeking!** ” She giggled again. “ **Geecku is best predator.** ”

“And sounds like a cute one too.”

“ **My buddy says that too,** ” The Lizard Prime muttered distractedly. “ **My buddy also says that I can be naughty with others and that’s not nice.** ”

“Well, your buddy is probably right considering how you took Naerie’s phone without her permission last time.”

“ **But I naughty because I poke lots to Carmie, and Carmie get angry at that,** ” She ignored my words, focusing on ‘Carmie’ and about being naughty. “ **She want to kick me out. But buddy’s nice and let me stay. But I behave nice for him because he’s nice to me.** ”

“That’s… good to hear. Still, you shouldn’t make people angry because it’s fun,” I chided softly. “People tend to get hurt a lot when they get angry. That’s why moderation is the nicest thing to do.”

“ **I know. Buddy tell me too,** ” She hummed happily. “ **But I end up waking up Addie. And Addie is mad… and sad. Mostly sad.** ”

I sighed. “Geecku, Addie does need her rest. You know what she thinks about early mornings.”

“ **Which is why I like sleeping with buddy. Buddy is super-nice.** ”

“Oh? Thank you, Geecku.”

“ **You welcome, Buddy.** ”

I felt another smile crawling on my face that was a blunt compliment. It’s still surprising how someone so simple could manage to impress this much emotion with just a couple of adorable expressions and a few words.

…

…

Wait, what just happened there? Did she just call me ‘Buddy’ and… who is Addie?

“Geecku, did you just call me-”

“ **Matty! I like Matty!** ” She suddenly exclaimed and I slowly eased at the fact I was just getting confused over the ‘Matty’ ‘Buddy’ similarities. I sighed, taking a moment to lean by the closest tree.

“That’s nice to know.”

Maybe I was starting to get too stressed up with what was happening and I was just hearing things now.

“ **I need to go. Ambar says I talk to her,** ” The Lizard Prime announced without warning, huffing in annoyance. “ **See you later, Buddy**.”

The call ended there, but I stood quiet while staring at the silent phone. My eyes were wide open and my brain was well directing its full attention at the last words I heard from the girl.

She did call me buddy and…

_**Who is Addie?** _

\---------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d---------

**AN**

_**It’s quite interesting how you always end up bringing up Latin… despite the fact you said that you hate it.** _

**It’s a Love-Hate relationship. I like how history and literature work… but I would like to delve deep in that lore on my own rather than getting whipped by good or bad grades (especially bad ones).**

_**I suppose it can be quite… stressing. Still, six more chapters and I’m sure things are going to get spicier. Do you think it will end on a happier note than in the original Timeline?** _

**Kind of? I don’t know. Maybe. Mora shouldn’t be technically coming as in canon she learned of her mother’s passing after the event has happened… so who knows. Who knows…**


	25. Rebirth of the Last Shine

** Chapter 25: Rebirth of the Last Shine **

** Beta-reader: Ant0nius **

I found it difficult getting off the floor when I first woke up.

It wasn’t due to tiredness, and I’m quite sure it wasn’t caused by my body. I felt fresh since I had rested well through the night and early morning.

I was still as I continued lying down on the floor, staring aimlessly at the ceiling in an effort to regain my thoughts in an orderly manner.

My mind… my brain just couldn’t properly compute what I discovered the night prior. There was much to say about it, and yet, so much to keep quiet about with what I had learned through that experience.

The De Magno Exploratione held much more than I had initially expected. Some of the content was outright ludicrous with how it was expressed, and yet I couldn’t peel my eyes off from the ink.

Things were going fuzzy the more I pondered about it, and there was no means for me to shrug off the immense truth that I had been given the chance to learn about.

The content in it was something that resonated deep within my memories, despite the fact that I remember having never found and read this literary piece before. Something about it struck me as familiar.

I knew the content within its pages before I opened it. This left me particularly unsettled as I would’ve remembered opening this book before now… but this wasn’t the case here.

I’ve seen its conception years ago. I remember being ‘there’ when it was being written. Not only did I have a recollection of the drawing applied to its cover, but I also remembered some of the written constructs left in the various pages making it.

It reminded me of a confusing bit of my life, when I was younger and incredibly devoted to an important task. It was something so essential for me at the time… but I couldn’t remember what it truly was.

But how did I see its creation and why it didn’t strike me before now?

I was growing accustomed with the confusing development of so many revelations hitting directly at me so frequently.

Yet this very element struck me the worse.

And while I had been quite careful to not indulge myself in these strange memories because of the dreadful amnesia-related reactions caused by these attempts, I still couldn’t help but actually push myself to finally get some proper answers.

This was the means I had been waiting for to finally reach the truth. The real answers to the questions that had been consuming me up until that very moment.

The instrument that I needed to use to unlock what was forgotten. Something precious that _I needed_ to remember.

To unleash what details of the past I had lost. And to bring wholeness to the shattered memories of my past.

…

Diving deeper into the pages, I forced myself to remember that extensive experience unraveling before my eyes.

There weren’t any strange reactions to this unexpected determination enveloping my entire core and pushing me through the various words and sentences in the large tome. And yet, I still felt reluctance building up the further I read through the words and the scenes.

The stories of a crew that did so much for the galaxy, and yet were barely remembered in history for its deeds. Sure, the book offered a solid narration, but it was just that.

There were plenty of stories about the Crests and, while a large majority had been confirmed as false, the remaining stories were still enough to shadow the events caused and solved by this small crew.

Misfits reunited under a single banner of peace and justice.

It sounded so romantic to read, and yet my awe was diluted by the fact it didn’t feel like a novelty for me to learn about. It was as if I knew these stories from somewhere else and… that surprisingly hurt.

My chest ached as the night progressed, and I ended up staying up even after Randal had gone to sleep. Reading in these circumstances proved to be rather difficult.

The Collie Prime had impressive hearing, and it would take a very sudden wrong reaction to get him to notice my current predicament.

At first, my swift reading brought up curious names along the tedious way offered by the book, just like the mayor had mentioned back when we met at the library.

Addie, Carmie, Ice, Gracie, Howlie (more than once also addressed as ‘Howlett, Howlsome, Howloski’ and other bizarre nicknames the author and leader of the group would come up with), and finally… Geecku.

I was surprised when the last member of the crew was confirmed to be the Gecko Prime. This enabled me to further study the odd correlation between me and the book.

Thinking back about the strange encounter with the Ravenhurst family through that call at Minos’ house, I had thought it suspicious how Grace and Gracie had similar depictions and personalities.

The curious connection didn’t just end with a few bits from the book, but also related to the way she had first reacted when the call started.

She had stared at me as if she had seen a ghost. As if someone familiar to her that was supposedly dead was now before her eyes alive and well.

And while it had been quite odd to just only notice now, the stranger elements within this book were all made by the numerous references about Geecku, explaining in grand details about the quirkiest of the outcasts reunited in that group.

Despite the gal having been the last member of that crew, her presence was noticeably impressive within the pages of the book.

There was a strong bond between the writer and the childish girl, enough so that there was a single detail that just stood out from the rest.

It was something I had almost skipped early on, but then I paused and returned to it when I encountered the word again. I was unsure at first, but then I felt more confident about this quick theory being real.

Buddy.

It was one of the few elements that distanced Geecku from the rest of the crew.

While it was normal for the other people in there to address each other with nicknames, the Lizard Prime was the only one that ended up fixing a mutual nickname for both herself and the crew leader.

They were buddies. He was the one that she trusted the most, and he was the one that took care of her throughout the complicated life of modern society while they faced the Empire’s forces.

“ ** You welcome, Buddy. ** ”

It was a nickname limited to just Geecku and the writer. Something so rare and unique that it shouldn’t have been given to someone else so easily.

And yet Geecku decided to call me that when we just met so recently. And those ‘encounters’ were through the phone. There was no reason to grow so attached to me after so little time had passed…

But-

“ ** See you later, Buddy ** .”

The more I thought about it, the more I ended up feeling like I’ve-

“ ** This is delicious, buddy~ ** .  ** Spice is good! ** ”

“ ** But I want sleep with buddy! ** ”

“ ** I trust you, buddy! **

“ ** Don’t- DON’T GO!! ** ”

And with that final memory, I felt other voices joining in a chorus to try and stop me from… leaving.

My entire world crumbled in mere moments as I felt my consciousness slipping away so suddenly and painfully. I was asleep for a couple of hours and yet… I wasn’t allowed a normal dream during that strange situation.

In fact, I ended up in quite the confusing but enlightening place.

_** A place that left me in a state of general dislike towards certain situations and developments that had led to this maddening circumstance. ** _

\-----------d-d-d-d--------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d----------------d-d-d-d---------

Blinking placidly, I found myself staring at the world from afar. I was floating… in space.

For a brief moment I thought that I was going to die because of the lack of breathable air, but then quickly realized that the situation was fine from where I was.

A dream. I was dreaming of what was quite the idyllic sight to be bestowed with.

I was staring at Neo-Earth far away from its surface. Enough to see its entire form with a mere look. It was so beautiful. Just like one of these pictures showing old Earth from several kilometers away.

And I wasn’t alone in watching such a glorious view.

Approaching slowly and carefully, the pure white figure stopped as I turned around to address  _ her. _

This intruder reminded me of a Nanozell Spirit, and yet, there was something about her overall appearance that made me doubt that it was one.

Something about her was… different. More complicated.

The spirit smiled kindly, yet I couldn’t help but give her a minor scowl.

Something about its angelic nature made me uneasy, and I felt wary of such a presence right now.

I knew of her… but I couldn’t recall where I had first met- No wait. I do- I do remember her!

“Child of Terra, my heart is warmed to finally have the chance to see you reach the truth,” The woman stated in a calm and suave voice. “I’m Apogeo, the Heart of Prime-”

“And the messenger of the Dragon Gods,” I calmly muttered, my brain burning a bit as I saw flashes of memories about her.

It was quite recent… and it was back on Earth.

“That would be correct,” Apogeo muttered, her tone showing a lack of uneasiness at this interruption. “I’m glad that you’re remembering so quickly and without impressing much stress on yourself. It’s good to know that the Grand Knight will soon return to his duties.”

She was at the bar. I remember now.

“I think I refused back then when you approached me,” I pointed out. “I said that I wasn’t going to be their lackey.”

“Not even when those you care for are in danger?”

I shook my head at that attempt. I paused for a moment as my mind replayed the scene of what I did when I first saw her.

Moving out of my stool and quickly paying the bartender, I had left by the backdoor. I had hoped to make a run for it, that the distance would’ve been enough to bolt out of the city…

But Apogeo wasn’t a being limited by speed and space. The fact that I was the only one noticing her approaching through the entrance of the building earlier in that situation should’ve reminded me of this.

Alcohol was more than enough to lessen up my senses and I ended up ambushed because of it.

“ Spare me the pleas, Apogeo. I know you’re better than this,” I rebuked tiredly. I had this discussion already, and right now I wasn’t in the mood to be subjected to this irritating spiel again “I remind you that  _ your  _ Gods decided to bring me back despite my wish to stay with those I cared for.”

“Your family would’ve missed you-”

“THEY DIED BECAUSE I COULDN’T CONTROL MY RAGE,” I yelled back, the area surrounding us cracking a little bit because of it. “You deprived me of my memories, suppressed my powers, but did nothing about the fury I had directed at the Dragons that, back then, I had no real target to direct it. My own mother and father thought that I hated them for no reason.”

…

“And here you are, sprouting about ‘heart-warming’ and even ‘rejoicing’ at my ‘success’ when we all know that you’re the sole culprit behind my amnesia,” I continued to vent on. “And let me guess, the Emperor is trying to return and you need someone to clean up the fact the fact your deities are self-centered morons?”

“I understand your anger- and I can see the truth in your words but-”

“Don’t even try to give me the ‘understanding’ card, because we both know that’s a lie,” I interjected again. “I was there fighting the war. Sure, the Gods helped around, but they did so little before the fact someone was trying to exterminate every race that wasn’t Narakhan.”

Apogeo finally showed distress through her usual composure. She kept quiet as I went on with my rant as she knew that I was completely right.

She had been there to offer moral support numerous times. She was there when the first tragedy happened and when the crew didn’t have a new place where to run to.

We were always chased by the Empire, the forces of evil trying to corner us at every opportunity left for them to use.

Apogeo was there to give guidance and help. She was a mediator in the few times fights erupted among us, and someone that assisted us through our galaxy-wide voyage.

But now that so many unpleasant things had happened after that long-deserved victory?

That figure had perished the same moment the saddening truth of this very individual was revealed to the rest of the crew.

Despite her priorities being protecting all species and creating the best of worlds out of the various circumstances, she still submitted to the rule of the Dragon Gods and she conceded to my ‘transfer’ back home.

Once a friend that I could rely on with my own insecurities and trust, she was now the greatest of backstabbers.

I glared at the spirit for a long time as I sorted out my thoughts, ultimately speaking once again.

“Let me ask you this then if there are some issues with my own thoughts,” I started with an incredibly calm and cold tone. “Did the Gods make sure to help what few Narakhans that actually helped us during the war, to purge away the taint?”

…

I knew the answer was technically no. While there were scientists that had already developed some therapies in removing the taint if it was applied years after the birth of the patient and if it was in its initial stage, I knew that the corruption couldn’t be removed completely.

A faint connection would still exist. One that was a haunting experience for those that lived a long life.

“Apogeo-”

“I-I tried,” She answered with a sob, my eyes narrowed at her as the spirit was now crying. It was the first time I had ever seen her do such a thing.

Finally, a genuine novelty in that sea of lies. Now I can die happy, I suppose.

“I b-begged them. I tried so much and… and they said that they couldn’t lift that curse. That it was only justice for those that had died to their race.”

I kept quiet as she kept crying, and I pondered on this.

Why would this insanity keep on for so long? Why wasn’t there genuine drive from the Gods to amend their own mistakes. It was their selective favoritism that created the Emperor.

The weakest Narakhan became the strongest monster in the entire Galaxy. A being capable of matching the deities with his simple powers, to squash Prism’s own last stand when the Empire started its campaign for conquest.

Despite my reluctance to admit it to anyone else but myself, I could also remember the small sympathy I held over our defeated opponent.

Their drive wasn’t devious as it would then become with the destruction of Prism. They tried bringing change, and ended up corrupted by the thirst of power needed to bring such a reform to the entire Galaxy.

Winning that war might have prevented the worst, but it mostly did nothing about the deities keeping themselves firm on their old judgment of the Narakhans.

“Why did they want me back if they knew I wasn’t going to be a soldier blindly listening to their orders?” I asked, this time genuinely feeling interested as to what kind of mental operation they went through to have me back. Before I was thrown out of this dimension, I remember being quite colorful with my words. Enough to at least make them reluctant in asking for my help again.

The Spirit blinked, keeping silent for a solid minute, but then answered with a sigh and a curt reply.

“They didn’t.”

Frowning at that, I felt confused by this response.

“What?” I inquired quickly and she nodded.

“The Gods asked for someone that could fit with the tasks, and I proposed a valiant hero that I personally know would make it through with these,” Apogeo explained with a nervous tone. “They were uneasy at bringing you back, but I vouched that you weren’t planning to do any harm to them.”

“I mean, swearing profusely at them isn’t harming them in any way, shape or form,” I agreed at the legitimate comment. “But still, why did you want me for the job?”

Indeed, why was Apogeo interested in bringing me back?

There was some hesitation at answering that and I sighed.

“Come on, I know plenty of the truth already, you shouldn’t stop at this when-”

“I missed you.”

…

I blinked at that sudden admission, completely lost at that unexpected response from the spirit.

“You… what?”

“After you were gone, I thought that the grudge the Crests felt towards me would’ve faltered in due time,” Apogeo started to elaborate. “And I was correct as they all started despising me less and less. With the sole exception of Carmesi, the Crests have long abandoned their hatred for me over what had happened… but none had ever granted me the very trust and affection that once existed thanks to you.”

Huffing, I shook my head. “You’re telling me that you wanted me back because of that?”

Before I had the time to say more about it, she closed up the gap between us and had her hands squeezing at my shoulders.

I stared right at her face as she looked at me with a fierce and serious look. Almost forgetting how intense her cyan eyes would get when she was either annoyed or angry.

“No.”

Frowning at this, I was about to speak again when I was suddenly pulled in a tight hug.

The spirit’s hold was almost desperate, almost needy and she sobbed again as soon as her chin found a spot by my shoulder.

“I missed my friends.”

My eyes widened at that declaration, but she was far from being done with this.

“I missed when I wasn’t just a messenger. When my purpose wasn’t just to be a… creator of Nanozell Spirits,” Apogeo muttered tiredly. “I wanted this back. I want to talk again about the present rather than the ‘what ifs’ and ‘what could have been’. I want to be more than just Apogeo the Heart of Prism.”

“You wanted to be Apogeo, the happy friend,” I guessed quietly, noticing a soft nod on my shoulder as she kept quiet after that, leaving me to contemplate some more about these very words.

From my estimations, it’s been at least two centuries worth of loneliness that the Spirit had to go through. Sure, Ambar has to have entertained her presence plenty of times, but I don’t think the Wise Bear was someone to just forgive the kind of rift Apogeo had been accessory to create by allowing my ‘removal’.

While I felt the need to do something about her betrayal, at the same time I knew that her choice didn’t depend much on herself. The Gods were far too interested in seeing me gone, and there was nothing that Apogeo could’ve said against that without getting severely punished because of it.

So I decided to take a step back from my furious state of mind and… accept the fact that I can’t punish someone that has already been punished for her mistakes.

So I lifted my arms up and wrapped those around her waist. Her sobbing increased a little bit and I sighed at the noise.

“I don’t hate you. But I hope you understand that I can’t just forget what you’ve done,” I pointed out with a calm voice. “I trusted you, Apogeo. I really did. And then terrible things happened.”

Leaning back, I allowed her to stand out from the hug to look at me properly.

“Which is why I want you to do two things for me. It’s not related to punishment, nor do I wish for you to consider these as such,” I continued, getting a quick nod from her. “These are favors I’m asking from you since I know that you can do something about both circumstances.”

“If- If it’s not too much, then I will work on these requests.”

At the spirit’s agreeing tone, I took a moment to smile and sigh at her eagerness. I really did miss this…

Just like I was missing meeting with my other friends.

…Oh God, I was going to deal with a furious Carmesi and an irritated Grace.

_ WHY IS THIS HAPPENING AGAIN! _

Still, I couldn’t waste time pondering how I was going to avoid getting pummeled by both of the lovely Crests. Preparations had to be made before I left and…

There was also the issue of leaving Gossamer.

Now that I knew that there was an urgent threat that Ambar was unable to face on her own, I would need to start wandering around Neo-Earth to take out the issues one by one.

But not now. I couldn’t afford to leave now that people at the farm needed all the help they could get. Not now that Diana was so close to passing away.

Gritting my teeth at that last thought, I decided to address the requests with Apogeo.

“First, I need you to ask Ambar to call me as soon as she’s free. Don’t say anything about my recovery, just that it would be best to contact me when she is available,” I started to list out. “Finally, I need you to make sure that news of my recovery is delayed for at least a full week from now.”

She nodded at both cases, smiling as she finished listening to the last one. “I’m glad that you found the care of Mrs. Linda enough to keep fighting for her children’s future.”

“You chose her for me, didn’t you?” I asked with a fascinated tone. “You tried to make me remember my reasons by giving me a situation like the one I started with back when I was first summoned here.”

The spirit merely smiled, and she seemed ready to leave in that very moment… but I stopped her by taking hold of her hand.

Apogeo blinked in surprise at this, but I spoke up instead of keeping silent about the sudden gesture.

“Since you’re here, how about we spare some words together?” I suggested with a mirthful tone. “I want to hear how life has been treating you, ‘Geo.”

Tensing up at the nickname, her eyes widening in remembrance at it. Smiling widely, the spirit nodded as we spent the next few hours talking about how things are right now and how the Crests have settled down after so much time had passed since I last saw them.

Despite my own annoyance that I was once again involved with a dangerous plot aimed at shattering the long period of peace I had contributed to create, I was quite happy to finally break through the last few obstacles of my amnesia.

_** I was whole once again… and now I had the means to help out at Las Lindas! ** _

\-------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d----

Time moved swiftly as soon as I started my first shift of my work.

I was once again left to deal with the Apple orchard, but instead of wasting time slowly picking up the fruits, I decided to test out the current potency of my abilities.

Huffing a little, I picked up the pace twice as fast that usual thanks to the use of **Wind.** The Element worked well in small quantities, but I had to keep up a frustrating degree of control to avoid getting cuts on the lower section of my pants.

_ Seriously, who would’ve thought that Wind was this difficult to manipulate. _

I was rusty after a full decade wasted away without remembering how to use my powers, but now that I was tasting the delicious results of my current mastery, I knew I really needed to make use of these capacities to bolster myself.

The farm couldn’t survive if I continued with my standard working conditions, and I knew that using once or twice the various elements wouldn’t make much of an issue for anyone around.

If any of the Crests had been nearby to perceive the small-scale usage of the powers, then yes, I knew that I would’ve brought unwanted attention to the farm as it was right now.

Grinning happily as I blitzed through the task, filling up eighty wooden crates with apples, I took an early end to my shift to bring the result of my work back to the house.

Randal was partially distracted in noticing the unusual increased amount of apples compared to the normal load, but Alejandra seemed perplexed by the various crates being brought at the entrance.

“How did you do that?”

Merely shrugging at the Cow Prime, I eagerly headed inside the house as I had a couple of things to do now that I was freed from work.

Returning to the Collie’s room, I went to retrieve my old phone and a screwdriver that I had found by the kitchen.

I sat down by the floor, carefully trying to pry open the stubborn device.

The action wasn’t one born from frustration at the little thing, but rather correlated to something I had forgotten about the fossil. Something that I now knew about after my memories had been unlocked.

The true ‘gold’ of this mystery was hidden within the physical form of the phone, not within its data.

The process was tedious, but I soon found myself entertained as someone finally decided to call through the other phone, the one that actually worked.

I gave a quick look at its display before accepting the call request, smiling as I knew that this was going to be the most amusing bit I will have for a long while.

“High Prime, I didn’t expect a call from you,” I muttered with faux surprise, holding back a snort as I needed to appear ‘innocent’ to draw maximum amusement from the fellow prankster.

“My apologies, Matt. I hope I’m not disturbing, I wouldn’t want to cause any disturbance if you were busy,” She replied calmly. “But I remember saying that you could call me Ambar, dear.”

I sighed, my lips twitching at the fact that she seemed completely unaware of the trickery around the corner.

“Not truly, Lady Ambar. I was just thinking about something odd I’ve recently heard about that I don’t know what to make of,” I explained with a ‘calm’ voice. “When I heard it, I thought that it was just slander, but now, I find myself more convinced that it might be the truth.”

The bait is now out. Let’s see what the hugging bear will do with it.

“Truly? Could it be something Minos had told you?” The Crest of Wisdom asked with a hint of nervousness, clearly distressed by the chances of some awkward tale having been told beyond the close circle of friends. “Like a strange party or-”

“I think it was something about you lying when you said that your relationship with Pulsar was nothing serious,” I finally interjected, my tone growing stern at the very instance. I can still remember Ambar having the gall in trying to deny any chances of her settling down with the Crest of Ice. “And now I learn that you have a smart daughter born from a stable relationship with him. Well, I sure hope somebody picks up that phone… ‘cause I fucking called it~!”

I grinned madly at that, waiting for the realization to sink in by the Bear Prime’s brain.

Waiting patiently, I felt more and more amused at the curious silence coming from the other side of the call… but I almost broke in chuckles when she finally answered.

“Matt.”

My lips twitched at her voice. “Yes, Ambar?”

“You remember.”

“Yes.”

…

“Everything?”

“Everything~.”

…

“Matt.”

I frowned at the sudden repeat. “Yes… Ambar?”

…

“You’re a bastard.”

At this point I exploded into a laugh at that comeback. My laugh was matched with hers for a couple of seconds, just enough for both to sober up from that little interaction.

“Good to hear that you’ve recovered from your amnesia. How do you feel?”

I smiled at her concern, managing a quick nod. “I’m well. I had a chat with Apogeo about what happened recently. Nothing that much important but… I’m now whole again.”

“I’m so glad- does that mean we can now talk about what will you do now that-”

“Not yet,” I interrupted her with a sigh. “I still have unfinished business here at the farm.”

“Always helping those in need,” The Crest of Wisdom pointed out happily. “Never change, Matt. Never change.”

“Also, I need to ask a favor from you. Something that I know you can do rather easily and without much of a burden on your paperwork,” I commented placidly, drawing a sigh out of the redhead.

“Already back and asking favors?” Ambar hummed with a sigh. “Sure, what is it?

“There is someone that is trying to fly here in Gossamer but is having issues due to logistics and timing,” I started to explain. “I know you can send something to pick her up. Her name is-”

“Mora Linda?” The Bear Prime quickly ‘suggested’, making me frown at the precise guessing. “To think you would be this helpful, Matt. You’re truly a gift. One that I would love to give a thorough hug once you’re in my range.”

“Good grief, Ambar. Mind out of the gutter-” I sighed, shaking my head. “I swear, you will always be funny and incorrigible. No matter how much time has gone by.”

She giggled at this.

“Good to know I didn’t lose my shine. Also, if you want I can call Geecku and-”

“Tomorrow, Mrs. Carebear,” I retorted with a sigh. “I don’t think I can manage you both at the same time. Plus I think you would tease the heck out of me.”

“Understood~, just don’t forget to call her. I don’t want the dearie to be in the dark for so long and- also don’t forget about my daughter. Don’t go too strong about this with her-”

“I’m not you, milady.”

Snorting at the interruption, Ambar regaled me with a final ‘see you later’ before ending the call.

And now… it’s only you and me, little shiny amethyst.

The gem was contained in a small golden decoration, one that was actually essential for its true functions to manifest. I poked at it, noticing it glow at my touch and I sighed.

“I swear to God, Archie, I will pinch your cheeks if you’re planning to jumpscare me,” I commented quietly as I continued with my poking. “I know you’re awake and just keeping to yourself for a quick fright.”

A familiar huff erupted from within the gem and… a blinding light erupted from it.

Waiting patiently as the phenomenon came to an end, I found myself staring at a familiar smiling face with purple eyes.

The Nanozell Spirit looked barely different from last time he was out from his gem.

I found myself grinning again. “Hello Archie.”

“It’s about time, Boss!” The flying spirit muttered happily, quickly rushing for a hug. 

In that hug, I found myself getting reminded that while the world around me wasn’t the one I had left back when the War ended, it still had the same people I had left behind the first time around. And I wasn’t going to stop until I was sure I got everyone back together and… a hug from her.

_** And from what I’ve read about our dear Queen, she sure would go for a hug now more than ever. ** _

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** AN **

** The last five chapters. **

_** This story is coming to an end… but there is still the Prequel and the Sequel before we can say everything is done here. Also, you’re a jerk for that fright. ** _

** Heh, I got you~- **

_** By the way, it’s been a while since you last uploaded a chapter about your adventures in Paraiso. I think the readers wouldn’t like that. ** _

** *Groan* **

  
  



	26. About War and Peace

**Chapter 26: About War and Peace**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

Calmly sighing for the umpteenth time, I glanced up to Alejandra as I continued with my careful operation. She looked worried, rightfully so as I continued to attempt something many wouldn’t have been able to do in the same circumstances.

Sitting on a chair placed by Diana’s bedside, I was carefully working on altering the ‘secondary purposes’ of the corruption she had on her body.

While it was true that trying to outright fix the curse would be nigh impossible considering the divine nature and how much of her soul had been tainted by it, I was still able to do something to at least soothe her pain in her last few days.

The first issue was cutting the Emperor’s influence out of the dark markings the woman had on herself. The process was the easiest since the big bastard was no longer ‘active’ and capable of countering any of the stuff I had planned to do.

The effect was instantaneous. Diana was already feeling slightly better over the lack of a strange ‘strain’ that had been there for years now. It was like releasing a chain that kept her from properly standing up.

“I know what I’m doing since this isn’t the first time I work on a case like this,” I explained politely. “But I suppose you’ve some questions about it.”

Adjusting her glasses, she nodded. “I’ve read plenty of pamphlets describing that it was impossible to treat this illness by known scientific methods. But you… are using magic- why?”

“Modern doctors have a mistaken diagnosis of the ‘illness’,” I replied with a nod. “While the symptoms are mostly visible on the patient’s body, the curse isn’t anything else than a soul-related problem.”

“Y-You mean that modern medicines can’t fix it?”

I blinked, staring up at Randal as he watched from the doorstep. With Archie having temporarily taken over chores of the kitchen for now, the Collie Prime was allowed to spectate the situation without any worries of things catching on fire.

I trusted the Nanozell Spirit to get accustomed to the slightly more advanced appliances in the house, having allowed him to grow out with his own mistakes ages ago.

“Medicines can slow down the dangerous secondary effects that the curse is known for,” I refuted swiftly. “But they can’t heal it properly, which is why Magic is more suited for this kind of operation.”

“The book never mentioned that-”

“I treated this situation before?” I interrupted Diana with a kind look. “It would be a lie to say that the diary is a full anthology of what happened to me and my crew during the war. Like… I never included how ‘things’ actually began, and merely started the first chapter with when I first met… Carmie.”

Boy, despite my renewed confidence over my future steps, I sure felt frightened by the prospect of finding out what Carmesi ended up becoming.

She wasn’t going to be happy to learn that I had been back for nearly a full month now, and I had little to no contacts with the others.

Minos just ended up being lucky, Ambar… was a similar case. But, that I found Gracie before her?

That was going to become grounds for some ‘heated’ discussions with the Crest of Fire.

‘ _But then I will at least have the chance to hug her again._ ’

This last bit was the reason why I looked at the situation with an uneasy but giddy outlook.

I really missed them all with their different quirks, personalities.

But now I’m back, and I’m not leaving again.

“Does… Does that mean that there are other stories that you never said about your group?”

I nodded, sparing an interested look at Diana, the woman slowly regaining some color as I continued with this second task.

“Yes. Some were not recorded in the journal because they were outright embarrassing,” I mentioned with a huff. “Others were… too painful to remember.”

The Cow Prime smiled, carefully shifting her position on the bed so that I had a better means to treat her marks.

While I was half-way done with this issue, the recovery was evident. I hadn’t completely healed Diana, but the woman was going to gain a few more peaceful days without having to fear the pain and the unpleasant drain of the markings.

Her soul was too drained to keep up and restore itself, and my hopes of this ending in the best scenario possible were close to zero.

“But… does that mean you’re centuries old?”

I frowned, glancing at Randal with a frown.

“What?”

He offered a sheepish look. “I-I mean, you fought in the war that happened a long time ago and… and you’re here now.”

“I’m still twenty-seven, Randy,” I assured him peacefully, still regarding him with a confused look. “I haven’t been alive for two full centuries.”

“But how would it be possible for you to be this young after so many years have gone by?” Alej inquired with a hint of curiosity. “You mentioned being summoned, but how does that work?”

…I suppose I could tell them a little more than it’s known to the rest of the world.

“Nine years ago, I was summoned in this dimension from someone that needed help in protecting someone-”

“Addie?”

I paused, glancing at Diana for a silent moment before nodding at her guess.

“Addie was someone important. An individual that the Emperor wanted to eliminate to further destabilize what remained of the Queendom of Prism.”

“But why would the Empire seek to kill a young woman? You never mentioned that in the diary and-”

“She was the queen.”

…

“How do you know that?” I dryly asked the old Prime, getting a giggle out of her as she beamed at the indirect praise.

“Let’s just say that while the book isn’t recorded as a perfect recollection of war memories, teachers at school still offered different views of some characters in it,” Diana elaborated mirthfully. “In fact, the theory that Queen Adela was your ‘Addie’ was considered valid until the High Prime denied this allegation.”

“And now that I’m here, I can say Ambar was just covering bases and saying a lie about it.”

“You protected the Queen back when she was younger?” Randy quipped with surprise. “I thought the stories were incredible, and that it was odd that the Empire was hunting your group so intensely- but this… explains so much.”

“I guess it does,” I muttered before nodding.

It was still impressive to discover how things had unfolded after so long.

Ambar surely shaped up a proper society out of this new planet.

The Crests had all settled down one way or another, finding their own resolutions after the war.

And... I still failed to keep up with a promise- no, _the_ promise. One that I didn’t have only with Adela… but her mother too.

This last thought was enough to sober me up as I prepared to conclude the last bits of this operation.

Nodding as I was done applying the mixed combination of Life and Light magics, I stood up from my chair.

“And we’re done here.”

My comment drew Alej’s and Randy’s attention on Diana, the woman blinking in surprise as she now noticed how much healthier she felt. The sensation was enough to get her shifting in surprise, almost wanting to stand up and admire herself better, but I moved quickly enough to stop her from doing that.

“I suggest you wait for a while before you actually try stressing your body in any possible way,” I warned sternly. “You’re still recovering from the operation, and any sudden actions might put your body in shock.”

“And that would be dumb from my part,” She admitted with a sigh, slightly annoyed that she couldn’t get up from bed just yet. “Still… thank you.”

“Don’t...” I sighed, shaking my head. “Don’t thank me. I didn’t heal the worst.”

She was still going to die. I couldn’t do anything against the various millennia-old curse, only remove the negative effects created by the Emperor to subjugate the Narakhans to his will when he first built the Empire.

“But you make it painless,” The Cow Prime rebuked calmly. “And that’s still something worthy of thanks.”

Her smile was the epitome of motherly kindness. The radiance was way higher than the one I was accustomed to from her part and… for a moment I felt myself faltering over my standing position.

I offered a weak smile, only for my attention to be taken away, in the most literal of ways, by a joyous Randal.

“Arf!”

The canine sound was the only warning I got as he pounced on me. Surprise swelled for a moment, but I managed to turn around in time and catch him instead of letting me fall down on the ground under his weight.

“T-Thank you!”

I cracked a smile as I peered down over his shoulder and saw his tail wagging madly.

Alej snorted, shaking her head happily while Diana… started to laugh at the amusing sight in front of her.

All in all, the scene turned quite comedic considering how physical Randal actually was in handling affection, and it was very amusing how I was literally lifting him off the floor by using enchanted strength.

The Collie Prime would notice that his feet weren’t touching the ground shortly after, eliciting a panicked ‘arf’ before he was allowed back on the ground.

The conclusion of that embrace prompted more giggles at his silly reaction, much to the young man’s embarrassment.

But just as we finished, Archie peeked from the doorstep and smiled as I nodded at him to enter inside. Just as I had expected, the Nanozell Spirit was done with the preparations for breakfast, entering inside and leading a couple of floating trays to the occupants of the room.

Diana blinked as she was regaled with some well-cooked eggs and slices of bacon on her plate.

“Compliments to the little chef,” She hummed after taking a taste of the delicious-looking egg.

Archie smiled widely. “Always working to improve on the boss’ own recipes.”

That got Randal to pause and give me an odd look as he quietly chewed his second slice of bacon. “This is your recipe?”

I shrugged, only for Archie to happily provide a quick explanation of why and when I decided to get him to learn how to cook.

Now, that was an embarrassing story I could tell without feeling too terrible about. Except I still felt embarrassed when Diana pointed out I literally went frugal when the ship had plenty of resources of use at the time.

Once breakfast was over, I proceeded to make my way to town with the cart filled with products I needed to sell. I had so much to do now that I got the most important things at the farm done and… _**I needed to pay a certain friend a visit.** _

\----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-----------

**~Minos’ POV~**

These past three days had gone by with little incident.

Minos had only visited town once yesterday, checking on the bar to see if Matt had finally left the farm’s territory and finally talked with either Taffy or Miles.

Both young Primes offered no news except for different levels of worrying over why the human was taking so long to visit the bar. Which was alright in his book, considering how furious the young man had looked in their last encounter.

Matt might be far from fully remembering the rest of the past, but the temper had never vanished. In fact, he was more than willing to bet that it had only been sharpened and refined into a weapon that was no longer double-edged after years of trials and errors.

The punch stung, but not as badly as his uneasiness over the matter did to his poor mind.

The Crest of Earth had genuinely wanted to tell the human the truth about his amnesia and origins, but the health-related issues were too strong of a deterrent to actually go through that plan.

Patience was the virtue for the strong, Grace used to tell him the few times the Bull Prime would moan about his unpleasant past.

And if words didn’t work, she would happily slap him left and right across his face until he calmed down completely.

Those were indeed the strangest memories of his time spent with her…

Still, things weren’t as dreadful as he had expected to turn because of his broken nose.

Today, Minos had planned to spend the day indoors, as he still had to carefully treat his bruised nose. The damage had slowly healed, but it would still take more time to see it properly fixed in its normal shape.

An annoying detail he couldn’t do much about except for waiting for it to pass in due time. Or at least that was how he hoped things would go when he started doing some basic stretching.

It was a must to have his muscles prepared for activity before he started with his usual training session.

Once he was sure that he was more than ready to start, the Bull Prime prepared to go through some push-ups as the first exercise.

Dropping to the ground and starting with the first ten, he continued up to fifty and then a full one-hundred round.

Minos’ truest enemy was his own power as he carefully burdened his body with his Crest to make it heavier and thus difficult to move around. This kind of trick had helped him plenty of times in the past, allowing him to gain maximum damage from any diving attacks against his enemies.

Now it was just a further improvement over his training. Something which main feature was to heighten the already mighty strength the Bull Prime was known for.

But just as he continued with what were meant to be the usual round of push-ups, his mind went blank as he felt further drawn to the ground. A blink, then Minos started to feel more sweat pouring out at the greater strain on his body.

It wasn’t too bad, nor anything he couldn’t manage. But the surprise was enough to make him turn back to reality and realize that someone was… sitting on his back?

“You really never stopped training despite the fact the war is over?” A familiar voice questioned, curiosity coating each word. “I suppose that’s only a sign that some of your old self never left… Captain.”

His nose twitched, and Minos ignored the pain as he felt the need to scowl at that familiar slight.

“You recovered your memories.”

A sigh, then the ‘burden’ adjusted itself on his back. “Yes, and… I have to admit. I’m still surprised to learn how much has changed.”

…

“Are you angry?”

“A little bit,” Matt admitted shamelessly. “But it’s not about the past, Major. It’s more correlated to the present.”

Minos huffed, once again ignoring the centuries-old gag that existed between himself and the Grand Knight. “I tried to tell you about-”

“Not. That,” The human interjected fiercely. “That’s not the issue. Not at all. It’s the furthest problem that could get me this much irritated.”

...What was he talking about?

Taking a moment to think more of the situation, the Bull Prime found it troublesome to ponder over what his ‘friend’ was suggesting with this situation.

“W-What?”

“Don’t play the coy game, _General_ ,” The young man muttered angrily, getting the Crest of Earth’s former rank right this time.

Now Minos was aware that the situation was serious.

“You played a big part in the Empire’s politics, military, and economics. And I’m quite sure you had plenty of chances to learn about the true nature and the modifications the Emperor impressed in the Narakhan Curse,” Matt finally elaborated. “So please, explain to me why you never mentioned these to Ambar or anyone else?”

…

Modifications? True Nature? He still couldn’t make sense of the accusations he was receiving.

He barely had any interactions with Narakhans. The Emperor was quite adamant to keep any Prime away from knowing too much about the curse itself but…

Was there something he was supposed to know? Something important about it?

Was it related to something happening to the owner of the farm where Matt had been working for a month now?

“I..I- I don’t know.”

“Truly? How?” He sounded vicious, and for a moment Minos was reminded of the war. This wasn’t unusual for the Grand Knight and… the only time he became this malicious was when Carmesi had been hurt by Kayin.

Something important must have happened. Something that determined the passing, or something quite close to it, of someone.

“I- The emperor… he was against- allowing me to know anything.”

…

The pressure dropped, with the Human jumping off his back and allowing Minos to recover control over his Crest.

It’s been centuries since someone had come so close to overwhelming him with his own power, but this occasion was far from unique. Especially with how deadly the person he was currently speaking to was when caught in a bad mood.

“I can tell that you’re not lying but… I’m confused. I thought you once mentioned that the Emperor told you everything since you were his most trusted knight?” Matt pointed out with a surprised tone. “I mean, it was a long time ago but-”

“I lied back then,” The Bull Prime confessed with a minor sliver of embarrassment, remembering perfectly when he used to repeat this to his enemies. It was a stupid lie, but one that made him sound like a proper General of the Empire.

“So you don’t know anything about the fact that the Narakhan Curse was soul-based… right?”

His mouth opened to give a curt ‘no’ to that simple query, but his shock froze him up as he realized what he had just heard.

“The Curse is… magical?!”

“Divine to be precise,” The human quipped swiftly. “The Gods left it to the Narakhans as a punishment way before the beginning of the Empire.”

So what the Emperor said about the early plight of the Empire was… correct? Why was he learning of this just now?

It’s not like it was going to condone any of the crimes committed by the Empire, but it did create some trust issues over how much was truthful and how much was false with the Emperor’s rhetoric.

“W-Why wasn’t this mentioned ever by Ambar or Kate?”

“They don’t know,” The human remarked dryly. “None of the Crests knew except Ambar since I told her yesterday, and you, Minos. This was something the Dragon Gods themselves told me when I tried to ‘cash in’ the favor they promised me to accept. With the first one of ‘staying around’ being rejected, I just tried to be the good guy and get other kind rewards accepted. By the way, none were.”

Minos finally sat down to stare at the tired look on Matt’s face.

“This is-”

“Stupid. Frustrating. Incredibly foolish coming from a group of long-standing deities,” The human listed calmly. “All fit well with the kind of people the Gods were when I had the chance of meeting them before… I left.”

The Bull Prime blinked, shock now evident in his eyes as he tried to digest what he was just hearing now.

To think that what had been thought to still be the most glorious of victories against the Empire had been tainted by the Gods’ meddling in the most unproductive way possible.

Their greatest hero was denied the promised wish? If the other Crests learned of this travesty, then there would’ve been another war, but this time the Deities would only end up alone against their champions.

But why? Why would they deny the Grand Knight his request?

“Why would they reject your requests? You were summoned by them to-”

“I wasn’t summoned by them.”

…

“W-What?”

“The Dragon Gods’ plan was to have Kate rule as the Queen, and to have the old line perish right where Adela’s mother died,” The human explained with a sad tone. “I wasn’t summoned by them… I was summoned by the former Queen hours before she died.”

Minos actually gawked at this. He had suspected that something was off over the fact that the small group of resistance campaigned by Queen Rehema managed to last for so long despite the Emperor announcing the Gods forsaking the remnants of the old order.

For the Grand Knight to appear to them despite the lack of the Gods’ blessing should’ve suggested that something was immensely off over his appearance.

But at the time, Minos’ mind didn’t allow for any foreign thoughts other than the Emperor’s will.

He thrived for praises and to serve dutifully a galactic order that sounded so majestic and idyllic, but eventually turned into the worst society ever conceived.

“The reason why I decided to tell you this is because I know you will not overreact this-”

“And stop from declaring rebellion against the Gods?”

The human nodded. “I don’t wish to make any of that. Especially with how dastardly the pricks are.”

…

“But how are you going to take revenge in-”

“I don’t care.”

…

“What?”

“Minos, I’ve been missing this for almost a full decade. I thought I had lost everything when I was sent back, when I forgot everything and… now I don’t want to lose it again,” The young man remarked. “If they try to bring me away once more then I will act accordingly… but for now I’ll let this go.”

“So you don’t wish to make a war over it?”

“Damn… right,” He agreed before letting a single sigh escape from his lips. Then his eyes turned to glance at the still bruised nose. “By the way, do you want that… fixed?”

Despite how overwhelmed his mind felt due to the previous conversation, the Bull Prime managed a nod and allowed Matt closer so that he could treat the wound he had inflicted.

Life-based magic swiftly mended and corrected the damage, speeding up the natural process that would normally take much longer to conclude.

He blinked once as the hand retracted, giving him the chance to check on the current state of his face.

Everything felt normal, much to his immediate relief.

“Also, I don’t want to impose but… I would need to contact two individuals before I leave,” Matt muttered with a hint of nervousness. “And I kind of promised Ambar that I would do this today.”

Minos frowned at the request. “Who do you need to call?”

Hopefully not Grace and Kayin. He was certain that approaching the matter now would only end up with the Crest of Love making a crusade to find where Matt was and ‘take him in her safe hold’.

“Naerie and Geecku,” The Grand Knight replied. “Both know of my identity, but don’t know yet that I’m now through with my amnesia.”

“I suppose Ambar doesn’t want this to be kept a secret from them?”

“Would you imagine Hugging Bear trying to do that to both?” The young man pointed out mirthfully. “She would never see the end of their wrath.”

Conceding to this situation, both Minos and Matt settled by the couch in front of the communication array.

Once the system was online and the two distinct individuals were alerted, the two guys waited for communications to be established with the other side.

A couple of quiet minutes passed and… the screen flared to life to show both girls already on the other side.

_**Minos glanced at Matt, wondering how this scene would evolve now that the stage was the young man’s to win.** _

\------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d---------

With a bright smile settled on my face, I regarded both women with the friendliest look I could muster.

“Geecku, Naerie. Good day, and I hope I hadn’t caught you busy-”

“We fine!” Geecku interjected eagerly. “How are you Matty?

“Matt,” The Bear Prime addressed with much less excitement, but still offering a positive mood with her tone. “I have yet to start with my daily paperwork, but I can spare some time if this conversation is truly important.”

I nodded at the redhead, pondering for a moment from which point I should start to tackle what I really wanted out of this discussion.

I needed to offer the truth, but in a way that neither would react poorly to it. Naerie was going to be ‘easier’ to face, but Geecku was possibly going to be complicated to restrain from trying to find me here.

A difficult instance alright, but one I felt certain of victory if I kept cautious and attentive about their moods.

“I’m glad to hear that,” I replied happily, before turning to look at Minos. “And I’m not alone here if you both noticed. Minos is here too since I’ve asked him if I could use his… communication device?”

“Array,” The Bull Prime corrected and I offered a thankful nod at that.

“Understood, Major,” I replied mirthfully, ignoring the brunet grimace at being reminded of the little fun gag we had running when I would ‘mistake’ his ranking with others. “Still, it’s nice to see that you two are fine and well.”

Geecku giggled and nodded, but it was Naerie that spoke up.

“Thank you, Matt. And I notice that you seem… happier than before.”

“I’ve been told some good news,” I explained, grinning as I emphasized my positive mood. “Mrs. Linda managed to have a minor recovery, which is enough to remove her from the danger zone for some time. And I think she will be able to see her daughter Mora one last time.”

“That’s… good to know,” Naerie stated, seemingly ignoring that her voice highlighted her uneasiness over the topic. It was never easy to talk about dying people, especially with those that never experienced that kind of loss.

“Oh? Is Linda the maker of apples?”

“She owns the farm that has an apple orchard, the one where the apples come from,” I replied while nodding. “And her name is Diana. Linda is her last name.”

Geecku opened her mouth in an ‘o’ and let out a little noise that signaled her understanding of my words.

“Is she sick? Why last time with daughter?” The Crest of Life pressed on.

“She has been sick for decades now, and she’s coming quite close to passing away,” I answered calmly.

“That’s bad!” The blue-haired girl exclaimed. “Maybe Geecku can-”

“You cannot, sweetie,” I replied tensely. “It’s not something anyone can fix.”

Her jaws dropped a little bit at that interruption, but while I expected Geecku to ignore the affectionate addressing, Naerie didn’t.

“Matt, I know this might sound odd but… I think you’re behaving differently from the usual,” The Bear Prime pointed out with a hint of concern. “Is everything alright?”

“Mostly fine. Thank you for asking, Naerie,” I said while nodding at her. “But there is something I need to tell Geecku before I forget?”

“What is it, Matty?”

I smiled. “Sweetie, you can now call me ‘Buddy’.”

After these words were dropped, I saw her golden eyes widening at the mention of the word.

She blinked once, then twice and… then she started to vibrate.

“B-Buddy.”

“Yes, hon?”

“Y-You’re-”

“I remember. And I missed you a lot, sweetie.”

A massive smile appeared on her face as she started to cheer on over the matter.

“You actually… remember?” The redhead beside the giddy Crest inquired. “I thought that… you couldn’t because of-”

“Some problems I had with mental blocks. Apogeo ultimately decided to let those go when I met her almost two days ago,” I interjected with a sigh. “I suppose you were not expecting this surprise.”

“I… wasn’t,” She admitted. “But… I’m still glad you recovered your memories, Grand Knight.”

“It’s still ‘Matt’ to you Naerie,” I rebuked mirthfully. “I know your parents well enough that I don’t see a reason to impose any formalities.”

She nodded. “I understand… Uncle.”

I blinked, a frown briefly flashing on my face as I quickly realized what prompted that sudden ‘honor’.

“Pulsar actually went through with that? I thought he was-” I paused, my lips twitching in amusement at this unexpected development. “I guess he went ahead and made me your godfather.”

Naerie nodded, confirming quite the interesting long-term reward I hadn’t expected to find out in such a manner.

While I did have some trouble convincing Ambar that Pulsar was her best candidate for a stable lover, the same could not be said for the Crest of Ice as the man was heads over heels with the Bear Prime.

Despite his reluctance to see his attempt of getting together with Ambar to succeed, he still accepted to make a bet with me while we were drunk. It was an odd circumstance, one I still don’t remember out of the fact that we were both brain dead at that specific point of our ‘partying’, but I remember a single element that stood out.

A bet which I asked to be made the godfather of any eventual children born from that union. That element persisted after so long and, right now, I found myself staring at my clear victory.

“Well, I’m happy to say that you succeeded with this task, goddaughter,” I resumed the conversation. “You managed to carefully bring this case to an end without causing any major problems neither with your mother, nor actually keeping me completely in the dark over the matter.”

She blinked. “But… Uncle-”

“This is a win on your belt, Naerie,” I interjected sternly. “I’m not giving anything freely, except for the praise you more than deserve with your dedication and attention to details. Congratulations.”

Her lips parted, finally shattering the blank expression that I was familiar to see on the girl’s face and… she showed incredible surprise over the matter.

Then, she allowed a nod, a ghost of a smile flashing between her surprised look and her trademark neutral expression. “Thank you, Uncle Matt.”

Just as I finished with the redhead, I noticed Geecku now staring at me intensely.

“Yes, sweetie?”

“When are you coming here?”

I blinked. “As you know, sweetie, I’m trying to help in a particularly complicated situation, so I will come to stay there once I’m done here.”

“B-But-” The Crest of Life pouted a little bit. “Maybe Geecku can help?”

“Sadly enough, it’s not a situation you can solve, sweetie. It’s something beyond what Life can do.”

She looked surprised. “What? Why?”

“The issue is a Narakhan Curse,” I answered quietly, and with that her surprise dimmed down a notch or two. “And that’s beyond what your element can do.”

She looked perplexed, slightly embarrassed but…

“I promise you that I will be there soon, sweetie,” I affirmed with a tiny smile. “Once I’m done here… we will be playing lots of hide n’ seek.”

That got her attention, a smile returning on her face. “Really?”

“Yep, and I hope you’re ready to taste defeat.”

“Geecku’s greatest predator! Geecku is gonna win!”

“Then Buddy proves Geecku wrong… again,” I mirthfully reminded, getting a raspberry in return for that.

The conversation didn’t last any longer and, once the call was over and I thanked Minos once again for allowing my request, I found myself returning back home with much done in a single day.

After swiftly selling the contents of the cart at the market, I thought my ‘visit’ at the Bull Prime’s place would’ve been relaxing. I was proven wrong.

I failed to keep up with my emotions over the chances of the Crest of Earth being indirectly responsible for hiding the true nature of the Narakhan curse and… in the end I was proven wrong.

_**And now that these complications were solved, I would need to only wait for Mora to finally arrive. Then I expect things to get… bumpy.** _

\----------------d-d-d-d----------------d-d-d-d-

**AN**

**Little detail for the next few chapters. The last four chapters will be written ‘back-to-back’ (updates will be one chapter each day for the next four days from now).**

_**Time to bring this tale to an end~!** _

**Chapter 26: About War and Peace**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

Calmly sighing for the umpteenth time, I glanced up to Alejandra as I continued with my careful operation. She looked worried, rightfully so as I continued to attempt something many wouldn’t have been able to do in the same circumstances.

Sitting on a chair placed by Diana’s bedside, I was carefully working on altering the ‘secondary purposes’ of the corruption she had on her body.

While it was true that trying to outright fix the curse would be nigh impossible considering the divine nature and how much of her soul had been tainted by it, I was still able to do something to at least soothe her pain in her last few days.

The first issue was cutting the Emperor’s influence out of the dark markings the woman had on herself. The process was the easiest since the big bastard was no longer ‘active’ and capable of countering any of the stuff I had planned to do.

The effect was instantaneous. Diana was already feeling slightly better over the lack of a strange ‘strain’ that had been there for years now. It was like releasing a chain that kept her from properly standing up.

“I know what I’m doing since this isn’t the first time I work on a case like this,” I explained politely. “But I suppose you’ve some questions about it.”

Adjusting her glasses, she nodded. “I’ve read plenty of pamphlets describing that it was impossible to treat this illness by known scientific methods. But you… are using magic- why?”

“Modern doctors have a mistaken diagnosis of the ‘illness’,” I replied with a nod. “While the symptoms are mostly visible on the patient’s body, the curse isn’t anything else than a soul-related problem.”

“Y-You mean that modern medicines can’t fix it?”

I blinked, staring up at Randal as he watched from the doorstep. With Archie having temporarily taken over chores of the kitchen for now, the Collie Prime was allowed to spectate the situation without any worries of things catching on fire.

I trusted the Nanozell Spirit to get accustomed to the slightly more advanced appliances in the house, having allowed him to grow out with his own mistakes ages ago.

“Medicines can slow down the dangerous secondary effects that the curse is known for,” I refuted swiftly. “But they can’t heal it properly, which is why Magic is more suited for this kind of operation.”

“The book never mentioned that-”

“I treated this situation before?” I interrupted Diana with a kind look. “It would be a lie to say that the diary is a full anthology of what happened to me and my crew during the war. Like… I never included how ‘things’ actually began, and merely started the first chapter with when I first met… Carmie.”

Boy, despite my renewed confidence over my future steps, I sure felt frightened by the prospect of finding out what Carmesi ended up becoming.

She wasn’t going to be happy to learn that I had been back for nearly a full month now, and I had little to no contacts with the others.

Minos just ended up being lucky, Ambar… was a similar case. But, that I found Gracie before her?

That was going to become grounds for some ‘heated’ discussions with the Crest of Fire.

‘ _But then I will at least have the chance to hug her again._ ’

This last bit was the reason why I looked at the situation with an uneasy but giddy outlook.

I really missed them all with their different quirks, personalities.

But now I’m back, and I’m not leaving again.

“Does… Does that mean that there are other stories that you never said about your group?”

I nodded, sparing an interested look at Diana, the woman slowly regaining some color as I continued with this second task.

“Yes. Some were not recorded in the journal because they were outright embarrassing,” I mentioned with a huff. “Others were… too painful to remember.”

The Cow Prime smiled, carefully shifting her position on the bed so that I had a better means to treat her marks.

While I was half-way done with this issue, the recovery was evident. I hadn’t completely healed Diana, but the woman was going to gain a few more peaceful days without having to fear the pain and the unpleasant drain of the markings.

Her soul was too drained to keep up and restore itself, and my hopes of this ending in the best scenario possible were close to zero.

“But… does that mean you’re centuries old?”

I frowned, glancing at Randal with a frown.

“What?”

He offered a sheepish look. “I-I mean, you fought in the war that happened a long time ago and… and you’re here now.”

“I’m still twenty-seven, Randy,” I assured him peacefully, still regarding him with a confused look. “I haven’t been alive for two full centuries.”

“But how would it be possible for you to be this young after so many years have gone by?” Alej inquired with a hint of curiosity. “You mentioned being summoned, but how does that work?”

…I suppose I could tell them a little more than it’s known to the rest of the world.

“Nine years ago, I was summoned in this dimension from someone that needed help in protecting someone-”

“Addie?”

I paused, glancing at Diana for a silent moment before nodding at her guess.

“Addie was someone important. An individual that the Emperor wanted to eliminate to further destabilize what remained of the Queendom of Prism.”

“But why would the Empire seek to kill a young woman? You never mentioned that in the diary and-”

“She was the queen.”

…

“How do you know that?” I dryly asked the old Prime, getting a giggle out of her as she beamed at the indirect praise.

“Let’s just say that while the book isn’t recorded as a perfect recollection of war memories, teachers at school still offered different views of some characters in it,” Diana elaborated mirthfully. “In fact, the theory that Queen Adela was your ‘Addie’ was considered valid until the High Prime denied this allegation.”

“And now that I’m here, I can say Ambar was just covering bases and saying a lie about it.”

“You protected the Queen back when she was younger?” Randy quipped with surprise. “I thought the stories were incredible, and that it was odd that the Empire was hunting your group so intensely- but this… explains so much.”

“I guess it does,” I muttered before nodding.

It was still impressive to discover how things had unfolded after so long.

Ambar surely shaped up a proper society out of this new planet.

The Crests had all settled down one way or another, finding their own resolutions after the war.

And... I still failed to keep up with a promise- no, _the_ promise. One that I didn’t have only with Adela… but her mother too.

This last thought was enough to sober me up as I prepared to conclude the last bits of this operation.

Nodding as I was done applying the mixed combination of Life and Light magics, I stood up from my chair.

“And we’re done here.”

My comment drew Alej’s and Randy’s attention on Diana, the woman blinking in surprise as she now noticed how much healthier she felt. The sensation was enough to get her shifting in surprise, almost wanting to stand up and admire herself better, but I moved quickly enough to stop her from doing that.

“I suggest you wait for a while before you actually try stressing your body in any possible way,” I warned sternly. “You’re still recovering from the operation, and any sudden actions might put your body in shock.”

“And that would be dumb from my part,” She admitted with a sigh, slightly annoyed that she couldn’t get up from bed just yet. “Still… thank you.”

“Don’t...” I sighed, shaking my head. “Don’t thank me. I didn’t heal the worst.”

She was still going to die. I couldn’t do anything against the various millennia-old curse, only remove the negative effects created by the Emperor to subjugate the Narakhans to his will when he first built the Empire.

“But you make it painless,” The Cow Prime rebuked calmly. “And that’s still something worthy of thanks.”

Her smile was the epitome of motherly kindness. The radiance was way higher than the one I was accustomed to from her part and… for a moment I felt myself faltering over my standing position.

I offered a weak smile, only for my attention to be taken away, in the most literal of ways, by a joyous Randal.

“Arf!”

The canine sound was the only warning I got as he pounced on me. Surprise swelled for a moment, but I managed to turn around in time and catch him instead of letting me fall down on the ground under his weight.

“T-Thank you!”

I cracked a smile as I peered down over his shoulder and saw his tail wagging madly.

Alej snorted, shaking her head happily while Diana… started to laugh at the amusing sight in front of her.

All in all, the scene turned quite comedic considering how physical Randal actually was in handling affection, and it was very amusing how I was literally lifting him off the floor by using enchanted strength.

The Collie Prime would notice that his feet weren’t touching the ground shortly after, eliciting a panicked ‘arf’ before he was allowed back on the ground.

The conclusion of that embrace prompted more giggles at his silly reaction, much to the young man’s embarrassment.

But just as we finished, Archie peeked from the doorstep and smiled as I nodded at him to enter inside. Just as I had expected, the Nanozell Spirit was done with the preparations for breakfast, entering inside and leading a couple of floating trays to the occupants of the room.

Diana blinked as she was regaled with some well-cooked eggs and slices of bacon on her plate.

“Compliments to the little chef,” She hummed after taking a taste of the delicious-looking egg.

Archie smiled widely. “Always working to improve on the boss’ own recipes.”

That got Randal to pause and give me an odd look as he quietly chewed his second slice of bacon. “This is your recipe?”

I shrugged, only for Archie to happily provide a quick explanation of why and when I decided to get him to learn how to cook.

Now, that was an embarrassing story I could tell without feeling too terrible about. Except I still felt embarrassed when Diana pointed out I literally went frugal when the ship had plenty of resources of use at the time.

Once breakfast was over, I proceeded to make my way to town with the cart filled with products I needed to sell. I had so much to do now that I got the most important things at the farm done and… _**I needed to pay a certain friend a visit.** _

\----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-----------

**~Minos’ POV~**

These past three days had gone by with little incident.

Minos had only visited town once yesterday, checking on the bar to see if Matt had finally left the farm’s territory and finally talked with either Taffy or Miles.

Both young Primes offered no news except for different levels of worrying over why the human was taking so long to visit the bar. Which was alright in his book, considering how furious the young man had looked in their last encounter.

Matt might be far from fully remembering the rest of the past, but the temper had never vanished. In fact, he was more than willing to bet that it had only been sharpened and refined into a weapon that was no longer double-edged after years of trials and errors.

The punch stung, but not as badly as his uneasiness over the matter did to his poor mind.

The Crest of Earth had genuinely wanted to tell the human the truth about his amnesia and origins, but the health-related issues were too strong of a deterrent to actually go through that plan.

Patience was the virtue for the strong, Grace used to tell him the few times the Bull Prime would moan about his unpleasant past.

And if words didn’t work, she would happily slap him left and right across his face until he calmed down completely.

Those were indeed the strangest memories of his time spent with her…

Still, things weren’t as dreadful as he had expected to turn because of his broken nose.

Today, Minos had planned to spend the day indoors, as he still had to carefully treat his bruised nose. The damage had slowly healed, but it would still take more time to see it properly fixed in its normal shape.

An annoying detail he couldn’t do much about except for waiting for it to pass in due time. Or at least that was how he hoped things would go when he started doing some basic stretching.

It was a must to have his muscles prepared for activity before he started with his usual training session.

Once he was sure that he was more than ready to start, the Bull Prime prepared to go through some push-ups as the first exercise.

Dropping to the ground and starting with the first ten, he continued up to fifty and then a full one-hundred round.

Minos’ truest enemy was his own power as he carefully burdened his body with his Crest to make it heavier and thus difficult to move around. This kind of trick had helped him plenty of times in the past, allowing him to gain maximum damage from any diving attacks against his enemies.

Now it was just a further improvement over his training. Something which main feature was to heighten the already mighty strength the Bull Prime was known for.

But just as he continued with what were meant to be the usual round of push-ups, his mind went blank as he felt further drawn to the ground. A blink, then Minos started to feel more sweat pouring out at the greater strain on his body.

It wasn’t too bad, nor anything he couldn’t manage. But the surprise was enough to make him turn back to reality and realize that someone was… sitting on his back?

“You really never stopped training despite the fact the war is over?” A familiar voice questioned, curiosity coating each word. “I suppose that’s only a sign that some of your old self never left… Captain.”

His nose twitched, and Minos ignored the pain as he felt the need to scowl at that familiar slight.

“You recovered your memories.”

A sigh, then the ‘burden’ adjusted itself on his back. “Yes, and… I have to admit. I’m still surprised to learn how much has changed.”

…

“Are you angry?”

“A little bit,” Matt admitted shamelessly. “But it’s not about the past, Major. It’s more correlated to the present.”

Minos huffed, once again ignoring the centuries-old gag that existed between himself and the Grand Knight. “I tried to tell you about-”

“Not. That,” The human interjected fiercely. “That’s not the issue. Not at all. It’s the furthest problem that could get me this much irritated.”

...What was he talking about?

Taking a moment to think more of the situation, the Bull Prime found it troublesome to ponder over what his ‘friend’ was suggesting with this situation.

“W-What?”

“Don’t play the coy game, _General_ ,” The young man muttered angrily, getting the Crest of Earth’s former rank right this time.

Now Minos was aware that the situation was serious.

“You played a big part in the Empire’s politics, military, and economics. And I’m quite sure you had plenty of chances to learn about the true nature and the modifications the Emperor impressed in the Narakhan Curse,” Matt finally elaborated. “So please, explain to me why you never mentioned these to Ambar or anyone else?”

…

Modifications? True Nature? He still couldn’t make sense of the accusations he was receiving.

He barely had any interactions with Narakhans. The Emperor was quite adamant to keep any Prime away from knowing too much about the curse itself but…

Was there something he was supposed to know? Something important about it?

Was it related to something happening to the owner of the farm where Matt had been working for a month now?

“I..I- I don’t know.”

“Truly? How?” He sounded vicious, and for a moment Minos was reminded of the war. This wasn’t unusual for the Grand Knight and… the only time he became this malicious was when Carmesi had been hurt by Kayin.

Something important must have happened. Something that determined the passing, or something quite close to it, of someone.

“I- The emperor… he was against- allowing me to know anything.”

…

The pressure dropped, with the Human jumping off his back and allowing Minos to recover control over his Crest.

It’s been centuries since someone had come so close to overwhelming him with his own power, but this occasion was far from unique. Especially with how deadly the person he was currently speaking to was when caught in a bad mood.

“I can tell that you’re not lying but… I’m confused. I thought you once mentioned that the Emperor told you everything since you were his most trusted knight?” Matt pointed out with a surprised tone. “I mean, it was a long time ago but-”

“I lied back then,” The Bull Prime confessed with a minor sliver of embarrassment, remembering perfectly when he used to repeat this to his enemies. It was a stupid lie, but one that made him sound like a proper General of the Empire.

“So you don’t know anything about the fact that the Narakhan Curse was soul-based… right?”

His mouth opened to give a curt ‘no’ to that simple query, but his shock froze him up as he realized what he had just heard.

“The Curse is… magical?!”

“Divine to be precise,” The human quipped swiftly. “The Gods left it to the Narakhans as a punishment way before the beginning of the Empire.”

So what the Emperor said about the early plight of the Empire was… correct? Why was he learning of this just now?

It’s not like it was going to condone any of the crimes committed by the Empire, but it did create some trust issues over how much was truthful and how much was false with the Emperor’s rhetoric.

“W-Why wasn’t this mentioned ever by Ambar or Kate?”

“They don’t know,” The human remarked dryly. “None of the Crests knew except Ambar since I told her yesterday, and you, Minos. This was something the Dragon Gods themselves told me when I tried to ‘cash in’ the favor they promised me to accept. With the first one of ‘staying around’ being rejected, I just tried to be the good guy and get other kind rewards accepted. By the way, none were.”

Minos finally sat down to stare at the tired look on Matt’s face.

“This is-”

“Stupid. Frustrating. Incredibly foolish coming from a group of long-standing deities,” The human listed calmly. “All fit well with the kind of people the Gods were when I had the chance of meeting them before… I left.”

The Bull Prime blinked, shock now evident in his eyes as he tried to digest what he was just hearing now.

To think that what had been thought to still be the most glorious of victories against the Empire had been tainted by the Gods’ meddling in the most unproductive way possible.

Their greatest hero was denied the promised wish? If the other Crests learned of this travesty, then there would’ve been another war, but this time the Deities would only end up alone against their champions.

But why? Why would they deny the Grand Knight his request?

“Why would they reject your requests? You were summoned by them to-”

“I wasn’t summoned by them.”

…

“W-What?”

“The Dragon Gods’ plan was to have Kate rule as the Queen, and to have the old line perish right where Adela’s mother died,” The human explained with a sad tone. “I wasn’t summoned by them… I was summoned by the former Queen hours before she died.”

Minos actually gawked at this. He had suspected that something was off over the fact that the small group of resistance campaigned by Queen Rehema managed to last for so long despite the Emperor announcing the Gods forsaking the remnants of the old order.

For the Grand Knight to appear to them despite the lack of the Gods’ blessing should’ve suggested that something was immensely off over his appearance.

But at the time, Minos’ mind didn’t allow for any foreign thoughts other than the Emperor’s will.

He thrived for praises and to serve dutifully a galactic order that sounded so majestic and idyllic, but eventually turned into the worst society ever conceived.

“The reason why I decided to tell you this is because I know you will not overreact this-”

“And stop from declaring rebellion against the Gods?”

The human nodded. “I don’t wish to make any of that. Especially with how dastardly the pricks are.”

…

“But how are you going to take revenge in-”

“I don’t care.”

…

“What?”

“Minos, I’ve been missing this for almost a full decade. I thought I had lost everything when I was sent back, when I forgot everything and… now I don’t want to lose it again,” The young man remarked. “If they try to bring me away once more then I will act accordingly… but for now I’ll let this go.”

“So you don’t wish to make a war over it?”

“Damn… right,” He agreed before letting a single sigh escape from his lips. Then his eyes turned to glance at the still bruised nose. “By the way, do you want that… fixed?”

Despite how overwhelmed his mind felt due to the previous conversation, the Bull Prime managed a nod and allowed Matt closer so that he could treat the wound he had inflicted.

Life-based magic swiftly mended and corrected the damage, speeding up the natural process that would normally take much longer to conclude.

He blinked once as the hand retracted, giving him the chance to check on the current state of his face.

Everything felt normal, much to his immediate relief.

“Also, I don’t want to impose but… I would need to contact two individuals before I leave,” Matt muttered with a hint of nervousness. “And I kind of promised Ambar that I would do this today.”

Minos frowned at the request. “Who do you need to call?”

Hopefully not Grace and Kayin. He was certain that approaching the matter now would only end up with the Crest of Love making a crusade to find where Matt was and ‘take him in her safe hold’.

“Naerie and Geecku,” The Grand Knight replied. “Both know of my identity, but don’t know yet that I’m now through with my amnesia.”

“I suppose Ambar doesn’t want this to be kept a secret from them?”

“Would you imagine Hugging Bear trying to do that to both?” The young man pointed out mirthfully. “She would never see the end of their wrath.”

Conceding to this situation, both Minos and Matt settled by the couch in front of the communication array.

Once the system was online and the two distinct individuals were alerted, the two guys waited for communications to be established with the other side.

A couple of quiet minutes passed and… the screen flared to life to show both girls already on the other side.

_**Minos glanced at Matt, wondering how this scene would evolve now that the stage was the young man’s to win.** _

\------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d---------

With a bright smile settled on my face, I regarded both women with the friendliest look I could muster.

“Geecku, Naerie. Good day, and I hope I hadn’t caught you busy-”

“We fine!” Geecku interjected eagerly. “How are you Matty?

“Matt,” The Bear Prime addressed with much less excitement, but still offering a positive mood with her tone. “I have yet to start with my daily paperwork, but I can spare some time if this conversation is truly important.”

I nodded at the redhead, pondering for a moment from which point I should start to tackle what I really wanted out of this discussion.

I needed to offer the truth, but in a way that neither would react poorly to it. Naerie was going to be ‘easier’ to face, but Geecku was possibly going to be complicated to restrain from trying to find me here.

A difficult instance alright, but one I felt certain of victory if I kept cautious and attentive about their moods.

“I’m glad to hear that,” I replied happily, before turning to look at Minos. “And I’m not alone here if you both noticed. Minos is here too since I’ve asked him if I could use his… communication device?”

“Array,” The Bull Prime corrected and I offered a thankful nod at that.

“Understood, Major,” I replied mirthfully, ignoring the brunet grimace at being reminded of the little fun gag we had running when I would ‘mistake’ his ranking with others. “Still, it’s nice to see that you two are fine and well.”

Geecku giggled and nodded, but it was Naerie that spoke up.

“Thank you, Matt. And I notice that you seem… happier than before.”

“I’ve been told some good news,” I explained, grinning as I emphasized my positive mood. “Mrs. Linda managed to have a minor recovery, which is enough to remove her from the danger zone for some time. And I think she will be able to see her daughter Mora one last time.”

“That’s… good to know,” Naerie stated, seemingly ignoring that her voice highlighted her uneasiness over the topic. It was never easy to talk about dying people, especially with those that never experienced that kind of loss.

“Oh? Is Linda the maker of apples?”

“She owns the farm that has an apple orchard, the one where the apples come from,” I replied while nodding. “And her name is Diana. Linda is her last name.”

Geecku opened her mouth in an ‘o’ and let out a little noise that signaled her understanding of my words.

“Is she sick? Why last time with daughter?” The Crest of Life pressed on.

“She has been sick for decades now, and she’s coming quite close to passing away,” I answered calmly.

“That’s bad!” The blue-haired girl exclaimed. “Maybe Geecku can-”

“You cannot, sweetie,” I replied tensely. “It’s not something anyone can fix.”

Her jaws dropped a little bit at that interruption, but while I expected Geecku to ignore the affectionate addressing, Naerie didn’t.

“Matt, I know this might sound odd but… I think you’re behaving differently from the usual,” The Bear Prime pointed out with a hint of concern. “Is everything alright?”

“Mostly fine. Thank you for asking, Naerie,” I said while nodding at her. “But there is something I need to tell Geecku before I forget?”

“What is it, Matty?”

I smiled. “Sweetie, you can now call me ‘Buddy’.”

After these words were dropped, I saw her golden eyes widening at the mention of the word.

She blinked once, then twice and… then she started to vibrate.

“B-Buddy.”

“Yes, hon?”

“Y-You’re-”

“I remember. And I missed you a lot, sweetie.”

A massive smile appeared on her face as she started to cheer on over the matter.

“You actually… remember?” The redhead beside the giddy Crest inquired. “I thought that… you couldn’t because of-”

“Some problems I had with mental blocks. Apogeo ultimately decided to let those go when I met her almost two days ago,” I interjected with a sigh. “I suppose you were not expecting this surprise.”

“I… wasn’t,” She admitted. “But… I’m still glad you recovered your memories, Grand Knight.”

“It’s still ‘Matt’ to you Naerie,” I rebuked mirthfully. “I know your parents well enough that I don’t see a reason to impose any formalities.”

She nodded. “I understand… Uncle.”

I blinked, a frown briefly flashing on my face as I quickly realized what prompted that sudden ‘honor’.

“Pulsar actually went through with that? I thought he was-” I paused, my lips twitching in amusement at this unexpected development. “I guess he went ahead and made me your godfather.”

Naerie nodded, confirming quite the interesting long-term reward I hadn’t expected to find out in such a manner.

While I did have some trouble convincing Ambar that Pulsar was her best candidate for a stable lover, the same could not be said for the Crest of Ice as the man was heads over heels with the Bear Prime.

Despite his reluctance to see his attempt of getting together with Ambar to succeed, he still accepted to make a bet with me while we were drunk. It was an odd circumstance, one I still don’t remember out of the fact that we were both brain dead at that specific point of our ‘partying’, but I remember a single element that stood out.

A bet which I asked to be made the godfather of any eventual children born from that union. That element persisted after so long and, right now, I found myself staring at my clear victory.

“Well, I’m happy to say that you succeeded with this task, goddaughter,” I resumed the conversation. “You managed to carefully bring this case to an end without causing any major problems neither with your mother, nor actually keeping me completely in the dark over the matter.”

She blinked. “But… Uncle-”

“This is a win on your belt, Naerie,” I interjected sternly. “I’m not giving anything freely, except for the praise you more than deserve with your dedication and attention to details. Congratulations.”

Her lips parted, finally shattering the blank expression that I was familiar to see on the girl’s face and… she showed incredible surprise over the matter.

Then, she allowed a nod, a ghost of a smile flashing between her surprised look and her trademark neutral expression. “Thank you, Uncle Matt.”

Just as I finished with the redhead, I noticed Geecku now staring at me intensely.

“Yes, sweetie?”

“When are you coming here?”

I blinked. “As you know, sweetie, I’m trying to help in a particularly complicated situation, so I will come to stay there once I’m done here.”

“B-But-” The Crest of Life pouted a little bit. “Maybe Geecku can help?”

“Sadly enough, it’s not a situation you can solve, sweetie. It’s something beyond what Life can do.”

She looked surprised. “What? Why?”

“The issue is a Narakhan Curse,” I answered quietly, and with that her surprise dimmed down a notch or two. “And that’s beyond what your element can do.”

She looked perplexed, slightly embarrassed but…

“I promise you that I will be there soon, sweetie,” I affirmed with a tiny smile. “Once I’m done here… we will be playing lots of hide n’ seek.”

That got her attention, a smile returning on her face. “Really?”

“Yep, and I hope you’re ready to taste defeat.”

“Geecku’s greatest predator! Geecku is gonna win!”

“Then Buddy proves Geecku wrong… again,” I mirthfully reminded, getting a raspberry in return for that.

The conversation didn’t last any longer and, once the call was over and I thanked Minos once again for allowing my request, I found myself returning back home with much done in a single day.

After swiftly selling the contents of the cart at the market, I thought my ‘visit’ at the Bull Prime’s place would’ve been relaxing. I was proven wrong.

I failed to keep up with my emotions over the chances of the Crest of Earth being indirectly responsible for hiding the true nature of the Narakhan curse and… in the end I was proven wrong.

_**And now that these complications were solved, I would need to only wait for Mora to finally arrive. Then I expect things to get… bumpy.** _

\----------------d-d-d-d----------------d-d-d-d-

**AN**

**Little detail for the next few chapters. The last four chapters will be written ‘back-to-back’ (updates will be one chapter each day for the next four days from now).**

_**Time to bring this tale to an end~!** _


	27. Solving the Issues

**Chapter 27: Solving the Issues**

****Beta-Reader: Ant0nius** **

Taffy was looking incredibly perplexed.

Since today was her day off, it was easy to find and walk with her to a private spot in town. The park was pretty much our usual rendezvous when we needed to discuss anything, so she didn’t suspect much from this little encounter.

The real problem was that the reason that pushed me to seek her was quite… messy.

I couldn’t exactly blame her for being unsure about the story I told her, the one depicting the truth behind my amnesia and before that singular event.

I could’ve been a little less blunt and more attentive to soften up the blow instead of being this impatient over the matter. I was nervous since this important development brought up the true motivation that saw me unconvinced of forming a proper relationship with the kind Bunny Prime.

“Do you… really mean it?” She slowly inquired, her light-green eyes on me as she pondered over my explanation.

Nodding at her words, she seemed a little bit surprised and then… interested.

“That’s so… _Cool!”_

Wha-

Before I had the chance of commenting about this unexpected reaction, she gave me a warm hug, staring up as she smiled happily.

“Taffy-”

“That would explain the secrecy and why you couldn’t drag the memories out without hurting yourself,” She interjected again, her eyes glimmering in relief and fascination at the circumstance. “And- you’re one of the most renowned figures during the War Era! Even my grandfather was a fan of your story.”

I blinked, frowning at that last bit. “Really?”

“He used to recount the tales he could remember from the journal – your journal – when I was younger,” The girl elaborated happily. “Of course, most of those were narrated in a sillier way, but I pretty much loved these stories.”

“I’m… glad.”

It was at that moment the girl realized how awkward this situation was becoming.

“S-Sorry, it’s just that the Grand Knight was one of my favorite heroes during my childhood,” She apologized carefully and I waved my hands appeasingly.

“I understand. The thing is that… I was expecting you to be more shocked rather than… happy,” I admitted calmly. “You know, the news felt as big as it did in my mind and to just deliver it to you so suddenly- it felt a little too forward and-”

“Argh, I thought we both agreed to tell each other the truth whenever possible.” The Bunny Prime pointed out, sporting an unexpected irritated look at my response. Yet, as I returned her reaction with a confused look, she breathed a sigh of relief. “At least I now know that your personality hasn’t changed now that you’ve regained your memories.”

I huffed. “What were you expecting? A different Matt?”

“Most of the time, idols tend to turn out… worse than they are portrayed,” Taffy replied with a tone that mentioned experience on this particular scenario. “And I’m not going to lie, I’m glad you’re still a dummy about dealing with social situations.”

“Not… always.”

She snorted, finally releasing me from that hug and giving me a curious look.

“I hope you told Mrs. Diana and the others about it,” The girl inquired, getting a nod out of me.

“I wasn’t exactly planning to keep it a secret to those I can trust,” I muttered in return. “I don’t have really a reason to keep it a secret anyway.”

“You’re right,” The Prime hummed, but before she continued that topic, her attention finally noticed something tiny, curious, and incredibly bored was now peering over my shoulder and staring right at her.

“Is that...” She blinked, surprise swelling as I noticed only in that instance her reaction and staring at something behind me. “Archie?”

Just as I turned to greet the impatient Nanozell Spirit, the now-smiling being floated over my head and smiled at the awed young woman.

“That’s me! Nice to meet ya!”

The girl giggled. “Likewise. I remember reading that you were a mischievous prankster.”

“Absolute rubbish, lovely girl!” He rebuked loudly and with an old-ish tone. “I’m a wise, mature, and magnificent State of Art Nanozell-born Spirit!”

I shook my head at the little ‘self-portrayal’, causing Taffy to giggle once again at that comment.

“You forgot ‘incredibly smart’ to your list,” I commented dryly. “By the way, can you come here for a second?”

He blinked, nodding happily as he complied with my request.

“Sure thing, boss. What do you need to tell me- _aahhhhhh!_ ”

Despite the centuries gone by since I last did this, I soon remembered how gullible Archie could be when his ego was stroked with a non-threatening tone.

Pinching his cheeks, his face gained a tiny bit of red born from the little pain born from my action. He shook a little bit, whining like a brat as I pinched him for a while.

“Bwass- let mwe go!”

“That’s just a reminder to not do anything awkward, Archie. I know you well enough to expect a prank around the corner,” I remarked neutrally. “I swear, I’ll always regret leaving you under the care of Ambar when we first reached Earth.”

At that point, Taffy hummed with some interest. “You knew the Crest of Wisdom personally. I suppose you knew other crests too.”

I sighed. “Kind of difficult to not know about the others when a large part of the crew was made by some.”

She looked ready to speak some more, but paused as her mind fully registered my reply. She gawked, her mouths opening and closing multiple times without a word being uttered… and then she frowned.

“You- your crew was made by Crests?”

“I mean, I’m shocked that the little ‘censorship’ I had applied to hide their identities despite centuries of the journal being around, but yes.”

Releasing the whining Spirit, Archie finally shifted his attention to the topic of the conversation.

“I should still have a picture with everyone in it,” The flying ‘imp’ pointed out, materializing a thin object in his hands and offering it to Taffy. “Here.”

I looked over the frame and blinked at the sight I was bestowed. My mind perfectly remembered that final picture, one of the last ones taken before the final fight.

A small request from Addie, the young Queen asked to have a full picture with those that became part of her newer family.

She was smiling brightly in that photo. I was mirthfully holding her tightly and closely, with both Carmesi and Grace pressing on our side as we looked at the camera.

Geecku was happily latching onto my back, her head peeking with a blissful look while her more innocent ‘sister’, Xeánica, held a hand over her smile at the sight.

Pulsar and Howl were smiling widely as they both were hanging one of their arms over the other’s shoulders. They both developed an odd bromance the very moment they met.

\-----d-d-d-d-

“Aren’t you squeezing me a little bit too hard?” I asked with a hint of confusion and surprise.

“Nope,” Carmie muttered mischievously, while Grace merely giggled.

‘ _Dangit.’_

Geecku merely snuggled on my cheek, while Addie pressed for a tighter hug.

\-------d-d-d-d-----

Kayin and Minos both sported grimaces as they reacted to the ‘instant before disaster struck’ situation happening right nearby their position. Bengala was flexing and posing with Kate’s swords much to the latter irritation and fury from the murderous scowl the blonde was displaying so happily.

Sem and Feather were holding each other, having proclaimed to becoming an item just a few days before the shot . The celebrations were a mix of happiness, amusement, and embarrassment when the influence of the alcohol faltered.

Lastly, Ambar was grinning giddily as she was holding quite tightly a cheeky-looking Nanozell Spirit.

Scoffing, I stared up at Archie, and the little guy had enough shame in his brain to actually turn away at my accusing look.

“Can you tell me their names?” Taffy asked quietly. “I can recognize a few there. Like… this is Grace and Kayin, they were friends with-” Her eyes widened. “That’s Minos!”

“I suppose you weren’t expecting him to be ‘that’ old, weren’t you?”

“N-Not truly,” The Bunny Prime admitted. “But… he’s a Crest, isn’t he?”

I nodded. “The Crest of Earth and… I think you might have known him as the affectionately named ‘Captain’ from the journal.”

“He- He was-”

“He’s no longer a baddie,” I assured her with a nod. “He has made a long and guided path to redemption thanks to Grace. He’s not a threat.”

The young woman looked relieved by that guarantee. “I just can’t imagine him being… that man. He always sounded so angry...”

“Leading elite forces and getting beaten from time to time from an ‘under-equipped’ and weaker group can get the worst of tempers from anyone,” I pointed out mirthfully, remembering the various adventures caused by the encounters with Imperial forces. “But I bet you can’t get around the fact he is quite chill now.”

“He is a brilliant painter! And that hobby takes so much patience to get it done to that level,” She rebuked. “But… yeah, that’s truly unexpected and… kind of a shocker.”

“I can see that,” I agreed with a nod. “But I suppose you want to learn a little more about the others, right?”

As she nodded eagerly at that proposal, I started to list out the people in the picture with some comments about their personalities.

The descriptions got more and more giggles out of the deeply-amused Taffy, especially when Archie would help me deliver some punchlines over certain ‘unknown’ elements about the High Prime and Minos.

We were sitting by the soft grass, with the girl giving utmost attention to the words leaving my lips as I offered her some more stories about the past that weren’t listed in the journal.

Simple tales that really didn’t leave much of an impact, but in their quantity became quite the funny attachment to what turned into an adventure of the lifetime.

It was a nice trip to memory lane, one that was softened and rendered beautiful by Taffy’s curiosity, almost childish in its wondrous display.

Archie eventually started showing more pictures, each of those going further back in time as the people shown decreased more and more.

The crew continued to ‘lose’ members up until the Nanozell Spirit ended up revealing a picture I…

That I actually thought long lost.

I blinked, a flabbergasted look plastered on my face as I forgot about this tiny photo.

\-------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d--------

“Are you sure we aren’t being chased?” I asked nervously, looking at a distracted Archie as the Spirit quickly checked all of the detection systems on the starship.

“None that the devices here can spot, boss. I think we’re finally free from the pursuit.”

At least I wasn’t going to deal with any of the crazy stuff that happened just a few hours ago.

I still felt cold, dreadfully so as I walked out of the cockpit and right towards the living quarters.

My mind felt heavy as my uneasy thoughts were clogging my capacity to think straight over what I was supposed to say to… her.

I failed her. And her mother.

I didn’t need to see her now to know she hated me for what happened.

And I couldn’t fault her for it. I was the one that caused that scene. The one that got her mother killed.

I could’ve prevented it… maybe?

Perhaps.

My brain scrambled in a conflicting state of self-accusation and meek defense. I was drained, our lucky escape having taken a mental toll on my poor mind as we managed to evade the clutches of this ‘Empire’.

It reminded me too much of Star Wars… but with anthropomorphic people.

Primes. Apogeo mentioned that they weren’t more animals than Humans.

Except for the fur, and the horns… and some other key features in their appearances.

Sighing, I shook my head as I stopped in front of her room.

Adela. Was she going to attack me if I entered inside?

I gulped nervously while I knocked at her door. Two quick knocks, enough to get the sole occupant’s attention.

Silence followed as I waited for an input. Either a foul word or a reluctant permission to enter.

I was regaled with neither of those, and I frowned at the lack of a response.

“A-Adela-” I muttered, knocking again. As I was denied a reply once more, I reached for the handle and pushed it down. “I’m- I’m coming inside.”

‘ _God, that sounds so indecent!’_

I carefully opened the door, bracing myself for the worst to happen and… I was met with a sudden flash.

A bright light forced my eyes shut, my hands reaching for my face as I tried to rationalize what was going on.

A giggle filled my ears, and soon I was given back my sight as my eyes adjusted back to the normal illumination.

My stare locked onto the smiling Adela, her attention directed at the camera she was holding in her hands.

“That’s sure going to be saved up for later,” The Coyote commented with a mirthful tone, her attention turning back at me. “And sorry for the little prank. I just wanted to see how you would’ve reacted to it and… it was hilarious.”

I allowed an uneasy smile. “I-I guess.”

Blinking curiously at my reply, the young woman frowned at me. “Are you alright?”

Am I- Am I alri-

_How could she just forget about what happened just half a day ago? How?!_

_Her mother died. It was my fault, and here she is looking as if nothing had happened._

“Adela-”

“Don’t give me that look,” She reprimanded sternly. “Don’t you dare give me that guilty look.”

...What?

“B-But I- I wasn’t able to-”

“To fight three Elite guards and defeat their leader? Do you really know how silly that sounds considering how untrained you are?” The girl remarked tiredly. “I think we’ve already established that it isn’t your fault that… it happened.”

She tensed up, clearly unnerved by the reminder and I took a step closer to her.

Blinking, her stare quickly returned to me and she sighed. “Do you really think I’m so fragile? You would be wrong if that’s what you think of me.”

I flinched, planning to make a few steps back at that response.

But while her words said one thing, Adela closing up the gap between us for a hug offered a different look at the situation.

My eyes were wide as she grasped me tightly, prompting my arms to wrap around her neck as tight as her own were around my waist.

“You promised me that you would never allow this to happen ever again,” The Coyote Prime reminded. “You’re my knight. You’re my protector. I… I know my mother didn’t make a mistake. I refuse to believe that.”

…

“Adela-”

“Addie,” She firmly interrupted. “I refuse to be called otherwise by my paladin.”

…

“O-Okay, Addie.”

A smile adorned her face. “See? Even though you’re a dummy about dealing with social situations, you can manage some good answers,” She admitted. “You are still upholding the promise you got from her. The one where you need to keep me safe, and to help me reclaim my birthright.”

“Addie-”

She huffed. “I think we should go train now. You might need to put on some muscles before the Empire starts to actually search for us.”

“W-Wait-”

“What?”

…

“Why are we already talking about...”

“Training?” The young Queen guessed. “Do you want ‘that’ to happen again?”

I suddenly tensed up at that rebuttal, and I shook my head on instinct.

“No!”

“Then we’re both going to train now,” She pressed on fiercely. “You did good in saving me and got us to this point, but we can’t base our survival rate on only mind tricks and luck.”

To be fair, Joseph Joestar had brawn to complement his brain. The issue was mostly his arrogance in most of his fights.

Her words were legitimately compelling, but while I was enticed by the idea of not screwing up again and maybe getting myself a bulkier body, I felt somehow reluctant as she started to explain that we needed to cut ‘shortcuts’ to avoid getting caught on unexpected predicaments.

She pulled me around the ship, ignoring my efforts to remind her that I was capable of walking on my own. The girl looked too happy to be deaf about my words, and after a while I found myself going silent.

“And then we will share a shower since… you know, saving resources.”

“ _**Wait, what?!”** _

\--------d-d-d-d-d---------d-d-d-d---------

“You look very… bruised,” Taffy commented as she glanced at the picture.

Blinking, I found myself pulled out of that memory and back on the present.

The photo had Adela and I grinning eye-to-eye at what had been the first of many training sessions spent together. It was rough at first, but then I got the hang of it and started to pick up the pace.

It was easy to pass Addie’s own training regiment since her main priority was sharpening her bow and arrow skills to a higher degree. Her body needed to be nimble, quick to react, and flexible enough to distance herself from her opponents.

The sword ‘chose’ me, and it was something that continued to live on even now that I didn’t have one.

“Addie was a sadist when we trained. I don’t know who trained her first, but whoever it was they will always have my unquenchable hatred.”

The Bunny Prime giggled. “Angry much?”

“With a burning passion,” I replied while nodding. “It was so frustrating how much of a teasing minx she was back then.”

The girl nodded. “I guess you were tight with her.”

“Incredibly so,” I confessed easily… only to realize that the young woman was giving me an odd look.

“You’ve yet to tell me what happened to her,” She pointed out. “Of all the people you mentioned, Addie was the one you held back the most from mentioning. Is there a reason why?”

…

“Yes,” I said before sighing. “And… I need to say something important to you after I tell you this.”

Confusion flashed from her eyes, but I didn’t allow her to inquire about the matter as I finally dropped the truth.

“Addie was- _is_ the current Queen of Prism,” I answered with a nervous tone. “Her full name is Queen Adela of Prism.”

…

“What?! You mean that you were close to our queen? The one that left the main rule to the High Prime and-”

“Yes,” I interrupted her little surprise rant, getting her shock down a notch or two. “And I think the reason why she ditched her duties was… me. Or rather, my disappearance.”

“That’s- surely that couldn’t be the reason for-”

“I made a promise to her. One that was as solemn and serious as putting my life on the line to make sure she was safe, and protected,” I interjected again. “I was her protector, I was her knight- I was her friend and family.”

…

“Do you… love her?” Taffy finally asked, her tone growing quieter at the topic. “Like… beyond friendship?”

…

“Yes.”

…

I sighed. “But this… this isn’t the reason why I couldn’t return your romantic affection. And I wish to say this because I know you want the truth about the matter.”

The girl nodded and I prepared to give a genuinely difficult conversation.

“Have you noticed that the Crests and the handful of people close to them managed to live this long?” I inquired calmly. “That the Queen is still alive and well despite the fact centuries had gone by ever since she first took the crown?”

The sad-looking Prime offered another nod, this one slower than before. Her mind was working on these questions and… I dropped the truth before she reached that conclusion on her own.

“Taffy. We are immortals,” I muttered with a strained tone. “We can’t die from old age.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “S-So, you didn’t want to… to...”

“I can offer you care, trust, love, wisdom and kindness in equal amounts as you can offer me in return,” I replied tensely, my throat tightening. “But in the end, you wouldn’t find normalcy in that relationship. You would be unable to find the joy of love with someone that you can live the rest of your life with, with someone you can share precious years with by doing what you love and care about. Which is why, I have to tell you this with a heavy heart, that I can’t allow you to make this mistake. Not when you deserve so much love and care from the world. The kind I can’t offer you now.”

…

“M-Matt,” I noticed a few tears already forming by the edges of her eyes, and I quickly reached her for a strong hug. The Bunny Prime didn’t resist, her sobbing finally unleashed onto my shoulder as I held her close and tight.

The world grew silent for once, and Archie allowed us some privacy as he kept himself from quipping about the matter.

“I’m not… going to let you go either,” I promised quietly. “Many would just depart and… let this wound heal slowly and painfully but… you don’t deserve that. I can’t allow you to suffer like that.”

She snuggled closer, her sobbing lessening a little bit. “I-I’m sorry.”

Sighing, I held her even closer in that intimate embrace.

“Don’t apologize,” I muttered. “You’re not at fault for anything.”

I felt her shifting, with her head lifting up from her current nestling close to my chest.

I barely reacted as her lips crashed onto mine. I was surprised, confused, but somewhat… calm about it.

I allowed the kiss to last a little while, just enough for the girl to pull out on her own.

A blink, then two. Her eyes were still puffy after the crying, but she looked like she had calmed down just enough to keep a proper stare at me.

“What if… I don’t want to let go?”

...What?

“Taffy-”

“What if I- I want to? Is it wrong?”

“It would damn you-”

“Then I guess I’ll still try.”

I sighed. “Taffy, I really don’t want to burst your bubble-”

“Then you will have to if you truly don’t believe it’s possible.”

…

“How about we make a… deal?” I proposed with a slightly uneasy tone. “One that I want to make with you because I understand your current plight and… I really don’t want to hurt you.”

She nodded way quicker than I expected, further making me grimace at what I was going to say.

Hopefully this wasn’t going to blow up in my face when I get to see Addie again…

“I can… make an exception. For you. I know how much you care about this and… I can concede to come and visit town from time to time,” I elaborated with a strained voice. “Whenever you call me, I will be there to see you. Archie can teleport me back and forth with ease, and while I might be unable to visit when I’m busy with something extremely important, I will always make time for you.”

The young woman frowned in confusion. “A-And that means?”

“Dating, loving, and spending time together. But it wouldn’t be a legitimate relationship,” Archie replied for me. “It’s… something that was once mentioned by Addie a long time ago about a similar case. Back then boss refused but… I can see why he wouldn’t want to genuinely give up on you.”

“But wouldn’t the queen be… angry at this?” Taffy asked with a nervous tone. “I mean, I think she returns Matt’s feeling and-”

“She would want to know you first, but I can already say she would be cool with it,” The Nanozell Spirit interrupted. “While one can easily be fooled to think that Adela is prim and proper all the time, you would be surprised how much of a fiery lady she is. In fact, she kind of tried to get boss to accept another ‘fiery’ individual with their closeness. It was… awkward considering how stiff boss was about it all.”

“And I still am. Mostly,” I admitted with a sigh. “I don’t do well with these kinds of situations.”

“And yet, you’re still going to do it for Taffy,” Archie pointed out, silencing me quickly enough. “Which is why, compared to the previous case, I’ll respect your decision about it.”

I nodded and, as I turned to the Bunny Prime, I found my lips taken away again by the greedy girl.

“S-Sorry,” She said after briefly retreating from the kiss. “It’s been a tough week a-and I think you still have some time left before going back to the farm, right?”

“T-Taffy, we can’t just-”

“It’s kissing- only kissing. I need some lovin’ right now,” She replied erratically. “Just… a few hours of this and I will be fine.”

I was surprised by her forwardness, having never seen her be this forward with her affections.

And while we were lost in that incredibly long session of kissing, Archie stared at us from above, a giddy smile on his face as he knew that he had just stumbled on some good blackmail material.

_**Still, I couldn’t help but feel that something else was happening while I was busy with Taffy. That something- or ‘someone’ familiar was now nearby.** _

\------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d-------

I found myself stopping at the entrance of Las Lindas as I saw a golden-colored jet sitting on a small clearing near the fields. The shape was oddly familiar, but I couldn’t exactly remember where I first saw it.

Proceeding carefully towards the house, I arrived at the porch without meeting anyone there. I could hear a few voices speaking inside, some of which I couldn’t recognize from this far.

Entering inside the building with a curious frown on my face, my eyes scanned around as I made my way through the hallway until I found out where the voices originate from.

Peeking from the doorstep that led to the kitchen, I found myself locking eyes onto the table where Diana and Alejandra were currently talking with a familiar individual, and another I was less familiar with. Randal was working on the stove, preparing something to serve at the visiting guest and the new arrival.

Ambar giggled as Diana finished telling an embarrassing story about her children’s childhood. The Cow Prime was in the brightest of mood as her daughter, Mora, was hugging her tightly as she continued to speak.

The younger Linda had yet to notice my arrival, and the only ones that actually saw me enter were Alej, Diana, and… Ambar herself.

The Crest of Wisdom turned her head the moment I peeked inside, a wide smile on her lips as she greeted me.

“Long time no see, Matt,” She muttered mirthfully.

I tensed up at that unexpected greeting, but I managed to nod back at her.

“Ambar. I hope things are well at home.”

“As good as it usually is. The paperwork is still a nightmare,” The Bear Prime conceded and I nodded in agreement as I could only imagine the burden that is to keep an entire nation working.

But just as we exchanged these few words, I noticed Mora letting go of his mother for a moment and finally turned to glance at me.

Her eyes were brighter than Diana’s, and her horns were slightly shorter than hers too. Mora looked ‘younger’ by all means compared to her mother.

Her ears were also long, quite an odd detail to find in a Cow Prime, but one that was perhaps connected to her father’s appearance.

No sign of marks or of the curse, which was odd considering that any child of Narakhan should inherit those.

She took a step towards me. “You’re… Matt?”

I nodded, ignoring her surprise as I had thought that she would’ve mistaken me for a Prime. I guess it’s a bit of a shock that I was actually a human.

“That’s my name. And I can tell you’re Mora,” I replied happily. “I’m happy to finally meet you.”

Blinking, her eyes went wide a little bit. And then… she moved forward once again.

“Thank you for… for helping here with Mom, Randal, and at the Farm.”

I felt surprised as I was pulled into a sudden embrace, but I carefully returned it with a warm smile on my face.

“It was only the right thing to do,” I rebuked kindly. “There’s no need to thank me for-”

“You still did something worthy of a ‘thank you’,” Mora remarked fiercely. “Just accept it. You did good.”

I snorted. “Well, I guess I did but-”

A loud giggle interrupted me, and Mora and I both turned to see Diana regarding the sight with the highest amount of amusement I’ve ever seen reflected across her face.

“C-Children please… don’t bicker about this,” The mother said between her giggles.

Mora held back her own snort and I shook my head at this-

And we both stopped as we noticed our reactions to that silly comment.

“So… mom adopted you too?”

My lips twitched at that. “Yes.”

…

“Older or younger?”

I briefly glanced at Alej, the Cow Prime strangely enough looking away as the query reached her ears.

“Older. Sorry, Morita.”

She pouted, but that ‘defeat’ was quickly shattered as we stared at each other quite intensely and… we started to chuckle at our ‘serious faces’.

“I-I guess you’re not half-bad, Matt,” She pointed out with an amused tone.

“And I really want to know you more now that we’ve the chance, Mora.”

_**Ambar smiled at the scene too, but I could tell that her visit here wasn’t just one of courtesy.** _

\-------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-dd--------------d-d-d-d---------

**AN**

**Mora is here.**

_**And I’m here too.** _

**Just briefly. You will obtain a bigger role later in this trilogy.**

_**Oh, come on!** _

**Sorry, mah’lady.**


	28. Ends and Beginnings

** Chapter 28: Ends and Beginnings **

** Beta-Reader: Ant0nius! **

** ~Mora’s POV~ **

Waking up was never easy.

The task would become more difficult to handle if the bed wasn’t any better than anything she had been sleeping onto in the years spent out of her home.

Mora yawned, stretching a bit as she finished her little ‘wake up procedure’.

Green eyes blinked just once as her sight grew more accustomed to the dim illumination offered by the sliver of light coming from the single window of the room.

Her room had been maintained in good condition despite how long she had been on the run. Either her mother or Randal, both would’ve spent precious time to keep the old place clean and ready for her return.

It was kind of heartwarming that they never lost that hope, but at the same time she knew that it was still her fault for things turning out this way.

Noticing the little derail with her plans, Mora shook her head and her eyes regained a hint of determination as she pushed off the bed.

Her sleepwear was something her mother had given to her the night before. The older Prime had mirthfully pointed out to her daughter how her old Pjs no longer fit her current frame.

Years had gone by and she outgrew the old piece of clothes. It was odd to be donning this specific set of sleepwear as it wasn’t skimpy… but it was still nice to be given some actual clothing now that she was back at home.

Home.

The mere thought brought a tingle trailing down her back. Enough to get a happy smile for what was going to be a tough job for today. Humming quietly, she carefully walked out of her room and towards the kitchen.

Her nostrils flared at the delicious smell of food being prepared, and she couldn’t help but lick her lips in anticipation of what was being cooked for breakfast.

Randal was whistling mirthfully, allowing the only human in the house to help around with the eggs and the bacon.

Her big brother always loved to cook. The fact that the food he was producing had no spicy options made it safe for anyone to digest at the moment. The fact that Matt was keeping an eye on the stove was enough to bring a renewed sense of relief within Mora.

The young woman paused, her ears caught a giggle from her mother, the older Prime finishing preparing some jam-filled sandwiches.

“ Finally awake, sleepyhead,” The owner of the farm greeted her. “I hope you got a full night of rest.”

Mora nodded, but before she had the chance of adding any extra details to her response, she was interrupted by a sigh from the one sitting across from Diana.

At first her eyes narrowed at Alejandra, expecting for her former childhood friend to provide any snarky remarks on the matter… but, her tiny rage vanished when she noticed the young woman was merely reacting to something on her phone.

Lips twitched at the awkward realization, Mora decided to ‘seek redemption’ by at least greeting Alej properly.

“ Good morning, Alej. Good morning, mom.”

Blue eyes looked up from the device and up to the fellow Cow Prime. “Oh Mora- Sorry, I didn’t notice you earlier. Good morning.”

Incredibly friendly. This was the opposite of what she had hoped to find once she encountered her again.

After all, they didn’t part away from each other on the best of terms, and yet the situation was… strange as it was.

While Alejandra was here, the woman’s role here was to keep an eye over Diana. Just to make sure that she would be alright as she recovered.

It was still odd how they were all afraid of some worsening regarding the tough woman’s condition. Mora was quite sure her mother had lived through the worst and was recovering.

Or… Or maybe she was just deluding herself about it. It wouldn’t be the first time a dying individual looked so healthy and well before a sudden fall.

“ Good morning!”

The sudden greeting made Mora tense up, her attention turning at the flying Nanozell spirit entering the kitchen just now.

Archie? Yes, that was his name.

“ Good morning, little one,” Diana replied happily. “I thought you would’ve arrived sooner.”

He sheepishly grinned for a moment, but it was Matt that answered the woman as he helped Randy settle down the plates with the meals.

“ I asked Archie to finish a small task I had him do. Something about backing up my old phone’s data and-”

“ The conversion of the data in proper replicable files. Things I can recreate as solid objects.”

Mora looked surprised at this, her interest over the spirits never reaching the point where she actually studied how useful they could be.

Living beings, that was something she knew, but their functionalities were a complete dilemma for the young Cow Prime.

Still, that looked deadly useful considering how important keeping track of documents was nowadays.

Despite the interesting topic, her attention was completely enraptured by her plate and soon she joined the rest of the small family for breakfast.

Just by trying the first bite off from the eggs and… she finally felt back at home.

With a pleased smile on her face, Mora quietly listened at how things unfolded at the table.

Randy mentioned something about leaving to buy groceries and medicines once the breakfast was done. Alejandra was going to spend ‘quality time’ with Diana before taking some time to deal with her job’s paperwork.

Finally, the bit that was the most important about today, Matt was going to be working at the fields until lunch.

As the human commented about this, he made a solid reminder of something Mora herself had asked him yesterday.

“ By the way, I guess you’re ready to help me at the fields,” The human said as he turned his sight on the giddy-looking young woman.

“ Yep. Just give me the time to get ready and-”

“ You will be ready to roll in the mud if it’s needed?”

The snarky comment from Alejandra caused Mora to blush in slight embarrassment. It didn’t take her long to realize that it was a reference to when she was younger and she tended to play roughly by the muddy bits of the fields with Alej and Randy.

“ I-I’m not a kid anymore, Patches.”

Instead of a snort to oppose that view, the dark-and-white-haired woman smiled smugly. “Then I want to see you work hard. After all, this is going to be your job now.”

My… job?

She blinked, but instead of finding annoyance in that rebuttal... Mora actually smiled.

“ I sure will make this job mine alright!”

The reply gained a twitchy smile from Alejandra, a fit of giggles from Diana, a happy sigh from Randal, and a mirthful nod from Matt.

Her smile flared and as soon as her breakfast was cleaned up, she stood up and… had to wait for her turn at the bathroom.

Now, that was something she had completely forgotten about…

Yet, as soon as she was done getting prepared, Mora happily followed Matt out of the house and she quickly had to shield her eyes from the unforgiving sunlight.

Huffing, she ignored the young man’s chuckle as they both arrived at the tool shed to pick up the stuff needed for their work for today.

“ So, do you still remember how things go down from this point?” Matt asked calmly, sounding genuinely interested in what she could remember of the farm life.

It wasn’t much, but it’s not like she was going to be so blunt about it. Not when she was kind of expected to remember a little bit more than she actually could.

“ Just give me a few patches and I will start working.”

Inwardly facepalming at her own pride’s cursed timing, the Cow Prime genuinely hoped that things weren’t as complicated as her fuzzy memories were pointing out.

“ Are you sure? Maybe I can give you basic instructions and you work on that or-”

“ I said I can do it, just give me a patch to start working from and we can get through this,” She interjected fiercely, completely ignoring her own thoughts over the matter.

The human blinked just once, and then nodded. “Sure… but I think I should still explain the newer bits since things have changed here.”

That got a pause out of her. Changes? What exactly changed?

Now curiosity took control and she shrugged at this novelty. “Sure, I guess.”

Nodding again, Matt led her to an empty section of the fields, bringing to attention the seeds, the hoe, and the shovel.

He started to show her how to plant the seed, and then use the other tools to properly settle the dirty and the water applied to it.

As she silently kept watching over his explanation, her mind couldn’t help but poke at her about something oddly suspicious. Something about what he was saying felt familiar.

Then it wasn’t just a feeling, it became a solid memory of when one of the old workers decided to explain to her how to work the land properly.

…

Mora blinked again, hoping that her growing suspicions weren’t true as she was slowly starting to think.

Once the human was done with the explanation, he offered a bright smile and a simple opening for her to use to solve this little curiosity.

“ Now, is there something you wish to ask? Anything about what I just said or something like that?”

She gave a slow nod.

“ Yes… actually, I wanted to know something that got me fairly… suspicious,” The Cow Prime muttered quietly. “Matt, tell me the truth. There are no changes to the old system, am I right?”

He looked surprised at first, then sheepish. The quick switch of mood was enough to cement her thoughts into reality.

“ Sorry?”

“ You’re still a jerk,” She replied with a tiny pout. “Like, how did you know that I was lying?”

He blinked at that follow up. “What?”

“ Come on, you saw through that lie, now I want to know how?”

“ W-Well, you know that… your lips tend to twitch when you’re lying?” He inquired back, a mischievous smile in full display after he said that.

Her eyes widened in a moment of embarrassment as… that was actually an old issue she used to have. One that Mora thought was long gone but… it would seem like it wasn’t the case right now.

Maybe it was the fact she was now back home?

She huffed. “Well… I guess I failed to lie about that.”

“ There’s no shame in forgetting about this. You’ve been away from here for years now,” Matt quickly commented, trying to offer her some reprieve over her forgetfulness. “Plus, I know you can still do it.”

“ Of course I can, but-”

“ Then what’s the problem?” The young man pressed on with a confident look. “Don’t think too much about it, and don’t let it push you down.”

…

Sighing, the Cow Prime nodded. That could work for her, especially since Matt didn’t seem the kind of guy that could rattle out about this awkward moment.

Once they split the empty tiles among themselves, both took their distance so that they could start to work on their current shift.

Smiling determinedly at the tough job at hand, Mora couldn’t help but match the tiredness with more and more happiness.

So much peace, so much calm. Yes, this is what she missed from this place.

Her throat allowed a quiet hum as she went through her task.

_** Time to break a sweat! ** _

\--------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d-----------

I should’ve expected for things to be harder to complete with a competitive Mora challenging me around that line of work.

I should’ve suspected that something was off about it just from the cheeky smirk on her face and the good progress already made by her when she proposed to make that bet.

But there wasn’t much I could do except take the L and allow her to redeem her rewards.

Huffing as I sat down by the kitchen’s table, I regaled Diana with a tired look while the woman glanced at me curiously.

“ I suppose you and Mora worked hard on the shift.”

I nodded. “There was a ‘bet’ between us about who was going to end the task the fastest and… she won.”

“ Not much of a surprise considering how good she was before leaving,” Alejandra pointed out. “In fact, I can tell that she is already in the bathtub and wasting all of the available warm water.”

Surprise adorned my face at that precise suggestion. “How?”

Wait, what was she meaning with ‘wasting all the warm water’?

“ Let’s just say that I was foolish enough to challenge her back when we were younger,” The young woman replied, briefly looking away as she said this. “I discovered on these few occasions that brawn can’t be beaten through logical replacements.”

“ And now I really want to know more about that,” I mirthfully added, getting a huff from her.

“ I can still remember how vexed you were each time you failed to one-up Mora,” Diana pointed out happily. “And every single time you would return to the assault with a newer plan.”

“ I never succeeded in any of those,” Alej replied with a frustrated tone. “Which is pretty much a moment of failure after failure.”

“ Oh, don’t be like that, dear,” The motherly woman rebuked kindly. “How many times have you found yourself using that experience to deal with grown-up problems?”

The businesswoman prepared to counter that with something smart but… she stopped before she had the chance to say anything. Her blue eyes widened as her brain realized that, within Diana’s simple words, there was a strong truth.

I didn’t need her to say this as her face was just telling her thoughts to the occupants of the room, and I too was aware of this peculiar circumstances that pretty much happened to everyone with that kind of good childhood.

Childhood allowed children to develop their chances of handling complicated messes during their years of adulthood. The means to build up cohesive thoughts, to understand the simple line between giving up and holding to the very end.

“ I-I mean, I did look back at those moments from time to time but…”

“ While you didn’t succeed in beating Mora in that regard, you still found strength and resolve to fight back other situations that were driving you to defeat,” I quipped before nodding. “In fact, since you have walked the path of building your own company, surely you have your own tales of close encounters with failure.”

She nodded awkwardly, looking quite embarrassed as the thought settled on her mind.

“ Still, I wonder if someone should tell Mora to not waste the warm water-”

“ I can get some warmed up if there is the need for it,” I offered with a nod. “Shouldn’t be much difficult, just some heat manipulation and it should be ready to use.”

At this change of topic, Alejandra looked at me with a curious tone.

“ Still, care to spare some words about what you and the High Prime spoke about yesterday?” The young woman asked. “I understand if it’s anything private but… you both were loud about it. And it kind of stuck around even now.”

I blinked. “Oh? I… I guess we had a heated debate. Nothing too big but… it wasn’t anger directed at each other. Let’s just say that we’re both angry at a specific group of people.”

And boy, how angry Ambar was when we started to discuss them…

\-----------d-d-d-d--------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d-----------

“ You didn’t lose your touch in food, Matt,” Ambar stated, patting her full belly as we approached her golden-colored jet. “And to be fair, I missed having you around.”

“ Likewise, cuddle bear,” I replied mirthfully, my smile widening at her soft snort at the amusing pet name. “Still, I hope you took precautions about what we talked about a while ago.”

She nodded, but her smile vanished as a tired look appeared on her face.

“ We got some knights from the Life Clan and the Light Clan working on this. I thought about calling Kayin and ask for some Love Knights too, but then there’s the thing of you wussing out of calling Grace-”

“ I can’t give her the news through the phone,” I interjected with a groan. “You know better than me that if I tried to do something like this with either Addie, Carmesi or Grace, they would skin my hide for being so superficial about it.”

“ They are still going to skin you when they learn how much time you wasted from calling them. Also, didn’t Grace already ‘meet’ you?”

Yep, she did. And that was why calling her now would be a tremendous mistake.

“ I know what I’m doing. It’s just that… it’s incredibly awkward, and I’m not even sure I won’t get mauled by them once the truth comes out.”

Ambar giggled, and shook her head. “Never change in that regard. It’s peak amusement how much you trouble yourself to find the best way to tell someone one of the ‘truths’.”

“ It’s painfully difficult too,” I remarked weakly, allowing for the woman to stare at the acres visible from the distance from where we were.

“ I will be honest with you, Matt. What you brought up about the curse will bring no small friction between the Crests and the Gods,” The woman pointed out with a more serious tone. “Let’s just say that... I saw fit to inform Kate about the curse. I spared her from the information of your return, but I felt compelled to tell her about what you discovered.”

Slowly nodding at that, I thought well about this development. Kate was always the stern, impulsive, but tremendously attentive kind of gal.

Never missed a hit with her thoughts over something strange, and her intuition had saved many people’s lives during the war.

“ She was already suspecting this?”

“ She tried to ask a proper audience to the Gods on the matter, but they would always deny her request at the fact that the curse wasn’t their responsibility, nor their interest.”

I flinched at that, now seeing where the Bear Prime was going with this.

“ I can see a Ballistic Samurai trashing left and right at that news. Tell me that she changed in that regard.”

“ Partly,” Ambar replied quickly, yet giving me an uneasy look. “Since her children were at home when I told her this, she took a few hours for a ‘special training session’ far from her house.”

I guess that’s an improvement from the instantaneous meltdown she was known for. Those were rare but… when they happened, things would usually escalate in a chaotic manner.

“ I was also planning to make a mass gathering of the Crests so that we can pressure the Gods to reveal the truth,” The Crest of Wisdom added with a careful tone. “It’s not because of what happened to you- at least, not the full reason. There are treaties that have been established when the war ended and they broke a few with what you revealed.”

“ It’s not a good idea,” I replied tensely.

“ We need to make them accountable for mistakes. Do you understand how many lives were wasted when they failed to help us with Prism? Do you know how much destruction was created with their stupidity?”

“ And I’m not against this,” I rebuked calmly. “But right now we can’t afford any infighting. Not with the situation at hand.”

“ The rogue Narakhans can be held back until we get this done,” She remarked dryly. “This issue can wait.”

“ The Emperor will not wait,” I shot back with a louder voice.

Her eyes widened, with her light-blue orbs sporting a degree of surprise that it was just absurd to see on Ambar.

“ W-What?” The Bear Prime exclaimed in shock. “Matt, the Emperor was killed- destroyed! We all saw his body disappear-”

“ But he’s not gone,” I muttered quietly. “I saw him, Ambar. He is still the one controlling Narakhans through the curse. He never left.”

…

“ This- This is big, Matt. C-Can you promise me that this isn’t a lie or-”

“ I would never lie on something this important. Not when it’s all about  _ him _ ,” I interrupted again. “The Emperor… he still lives as we speak.”

“ B-But how? Where?”

“ I don’t know,” I grimly replied. “I really don’t. But I saw him, in an incorporeal state, within the Curse itself.”

…

“ I will have to tell Kate as well.”

I nodded. “Tell everyone about this. They need to know if the situation escalates to a terrible degree. They need to be ready.”

The Bear Prime nodded, looking once more at her ship and… then back at me with a perplexed look.

“ It’s been centuries since I’ve had the chance to see you and… you look like you’ve grown finely,” She admitted mirthfully. “One can wonder how much will change from now on.”

“ I thought you were going out with Pulsar?” I asked as I noticed her half-flirt attempt.

“ We’re quite close, and we had Naerie… but we both are busy and have little chances of meeting because of our schedules,” The woman replied with a nod. “We agreed against forming a serious commitment and… it actually works.”

“ Are you sure about-”

Her finger was on my lips. “Theo, I’m glad you’re back and all, but don’t think I need help with how complex things are for me,” She remarked sternly. “You’re my friend, and I’m happy that you’re still the helpful goof you were back then… but this is my life. One that I built on a slightly shaky foundation, but still one I wish to deal with on my own and with my close family.”

I flinched at that and then… her hand moved on my cheek.

“ I don’t want to shove you away. I know how much you care for us, and I really find it a noble trait. But help those that really need help. Like Addie.”

“ How is she?” I blurted out as she was brought up to the conversation

“ A little receptive since I tried getting in contact with her,” Ambar answered. “She is still as shut off from the world as I last saw her a few years ago. But I know that she is fine and… not doing anything dumb.”

That was some excellent news. Yet I noticed that there was a degree of uncertainty now in full display on her face.

“ What’s wrong?” I asked and the Bear Prime… sighed.

“ While the Crests might be easy to convince about the fact it’s really you… I’ve reason to think Adela will think this is all a ploy to get her to be a proper Queen.”

I frowned. “Why do you say that?”

“ It’s been so long and she is still suspicious of any attempts from my part to get her to leave the palace. She is… stubborn and I know she will deny that you’re the real deal.”

I frowned at this, nodding as I turned to grace her with a determined look.

“ I think she will recognize me if I bring to her something only her and I know about.”

The Crest of Wisdom frowned. “What is it?”

“ A secret,” I rebuked defensively. “Let’s just say that I thought it proper to hide it away in case something like this happened. It’s the ultimate proof that either of us are the one we claim to be.”

“ And… you’re sure it will work?”

“ Perfectly so,” I added with utmost certainty in my voice. “I will work on recovering it once I’m done here at the farm.”

Ambar gave me a long look and then she nodded.

“ I will trust you on this, like usual,” The Bear Prime said while nodding. “But I really hope you know what you’re doing, Matt.”

“ Your faith is not misplaced, cuddle bear.”

She snorted, reaching for a hug and I provided her with a tight one.

“ Mhhh~ I sure missed these the most,” She hummed happily. “And now I know your form didn’t drop. Not at all.”

I blushed at that, shaking my head at that remark.

“ Always the pervert, Ambar.”

She giggled.

“ Always!”

\-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------

“ We just talked about big matters but… it was all right.”

Ultimately, I decided to offer something that wouldn’t give too much about our conversation. While I trusted everyone here to keep their mouths shut about the matter, I couldn’t give her that kind of realization.

The Emperor. While the bastard has been ‘dead’ for centuries now, it would be a mistake to bring up his name even now that peace was still at its peak.

“ I thought you would have talked about Ambar’s daughter, Naerie,” Diana muttered with some curiosity. “You spoke highly of her.”

I nodded. “Naerie is a good person. She did an excellent job with the situation, balancing well her interest in keeping me from suffering through exposing me to the truth and actually not leaving me in the dark.”

“ I guess the High Prime was glad that her daughter was praised like that.”

“ I mean, I think Naerie was the one to feel the happiest about the matter,” I remarked with a nod. “I guess she’s just happy to learn that she got a godfather out of this.”

…

“ You- You’re-”

“ Her father and I made a drunk bet ages ago. It stuck to the point where I was listed as her godfather despite the fact I wasn’t around.”

Diana giggled a little. “I find it quite… ironic.”

“ How so?” Alejandra inquired, clearly taken by this sudden comment.

“ Well, Matt is Italian.”

The connection was just obvious at this point, despite the fact that Pulsar had been blissfully unaware of The Godfather to make that joke.

Still, I found it funny enough to make a tiny reference to it now that the right opportunity had arisen.

Alej looked surprised, but still skeptical over the matter. What I said next was as unexpected as mostly entertaining.

“ Italians have a little joke. The world is so hard that one should always have two fathers looking after them, and that’s why godfathers are a thing.”

The older Prime snorted, shaking her head as she mirthfully laughed at the quote.

Patches spared a few giggles on her own, the humor cracking at her little shell over the matter.

“ And I’m done with the shower!”

Mora’s voice boomed into the kitchen, drawing all attention on her as she walked towards us and…

I found my eyes forcefully directed at her face, a smug look on there highlighting that this little development wasn’t unconscious from her part.

While she had managed to get her hair properly dried up, Mora had ‘mistakenly’ forgotten about putting on a shirt.

She was staring back right at me, her lips twitching as she tried to hold back a fat laugh over my gawking.

Alejandra sputtered, her face exploding in a full blush while Diana looked conflicted between laughing at her daughter’s little attempt or disappointed like many parents would be.

The motherly woman eventually settled for the former, and I found myself drowning more and more in embarrassment at that little prank.

“ What’s wrong, big guy? Having some trouble looking below my face?”

I tried to hide a tiny smile at that funny remark, having trouble already keeping up with that test of willpower.

“ J-Just a little bit,” I rebuked, getting an amused snort from the cheeky Cow Prime.

I can’t say I didn’t peek down once or twice during that struggle, but I still managed to pull myself before getting swallowed by the sight.

In the end, Mora ended up taking that L and went back to her room to find something to put on to cover her chest.

I was freed from that circumstance, but still found it difficult to stare at the other women in the room.

Alejandra was dealing with the same situation as mine, while Diana lost herself to laughter.

Life at the farm had reached a higher degree of happiness. One that seemed bound to last for a long time.

But just as every good thing, it had to come to an end. The unavoidable had to happen despite our hopes of the best scenario possible.

The next five days passed by smoothly, but each day would see the owner of the place finally losing more and more of what was left of her life.

As the fifth day came to an end, so would twilight, so would Diana Linda.

Surrounded by her closest family, all reunited around her deathbed, the woman passed away with a peaceful smile and a happier outlook for her children’s future.

A proud mother, a kind woman, a loving lady that just wanted the best for everyone… despite the painful price that each decision would take on her difficult life.

Her loving memory would last forever in the minds of those that knew her and… her guidance would never be forgotten by those bestowed with her torch.

I remained for three more days after that, all for the sake of keeping watch over the funeral, helping out with the costs, and helping the rest of the family keep together in facing the pain.

Randal decided not to leave, mentioning that it wouldn’t be right to leave his ‘little sister’ alone with the burden the farm had.

Alejandra eventually had to leave because of her work, but promised to visit frequently to check on both Randy and Mora.

I made a similar promise, but I knew that Mora would’ve been strong enough to hold her own with the farm’s upkeep. A tough woman for sure, but I was still going to keep in touch just to see how things fared at Las Lindas.

_** And with what tied me to the farm moving from the physical to ascend to the abstract, I prepared for tomorrow. Because from that point onward, I will have to face the music in giving my own farewells to those I would have to leave behind here in town… ** _

\--------- d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d--------

** AN **

** I know, I know- But what about Chapter 30? **

_** It’s an epilogue! One that will open up to what happens… next! ** _

** And before. **


	29. Never a True Farewell

**Chapter 29: Never a True Farewell**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

The wind was so peaceful here.

“I have to go,” I muttered quietly, my voice faltering for a moment as I graced my interlocutor. “I promise I’ll be back when they need my help.”

Silence greeted me as I stared at this beautiful setting.

This hill is… just the perfect place for one to stay to rest and watch over the world around it.

I came here hoping to keep a good grip over myself. It was only natural that I couldn’t manage to win this struggle.

I couldn’t bring myself to do so when my own parents died, so why wouldn’t I be even now?

Closing my eyes just for a few seconds, I allowed the silence to slowly consume me in that tiny bit of heaven on Earth.

I sighed, staring down at the small white stone with the black plaque. I blinked at the engraving, my lips twitching in brief sadness.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t stay any longer. That I couldn’t make sure that everything was perfect at the farm before I leave them to it,” I apologized quietly, imagining a certain woman giving me a confused but kind look at my silly conversation. “I know that they will manage. I can vouch for them. Mora is a stubborn lady, just like you were… if not more. And Randal will make sure that she doesn’t headbutt into challenges beyond her ability.”

My lips twitched again, and my right hand reached for my face before it started to carefully rub at both my eyes.

It wasn’t time to be sad. Tears had been spilled already, and there was no reason for me to add more to this.

Her memory was there for everyone to see, and things were slowly setting up at the farm.

Mora had started to complain about the hard work, and I found her words somewhat reasonable considering that now, her mission was to further improve Las Lindas.

The farm had the potential to become big. Even Alejandra mentioned something like this a while ago, and she had also brought up some interest to actually help Mora with her plans.

Like sisters, Diana would’ve said with the happiest voice possible.

And everyone would’ve nodded at that.

It was at that moment I found myself blinking at that thought, and I felt embarrassed for forgetting to elaborate on this detail.

“Also… Alej said that she was going to visit this Sunday. I think the family will be fully reunited from time to time,” I resumed my solo discussion, a tiny and frail smile on my face. “You shouldn’t worry about them splitting up anymore. I will make sure that nothing will divide them again.”

She would’ve been snorting at this, amused and slightly intrigued by what would happen with these two individuals at work, together and… as close as they were back when they were younger.

“So please, don’t worry about it because I will be there for them,” I promised determinedly. “Keep a peaceful watch over them while I’m not there… but don’t exert yourself too much, mom.”

My smile widened a little bit, and I nodded at my own words.

I can imagine her reaction. I can imagine her either asking to pinch my cheeks for being so sad ‘for dumb reasons’, or even hug me tightly to cement that promise.

“I will take my leave then,” I concluded politely, my body tensing up as I reluctantly decided it was time to part away from the scene. “I have yet to talk with Mora and Randy before I leave. I still have a little more left to say.”

I blinked at the last bit… and I sighed. “Tiny matters. Nothing too big or related to their responsibilities here at the farm,” I assured calmly. “I know they got it all stuck in their mind. And you know them… they will not mess things up.”

Turning around, I started to walk back at the house and prepare to finally leave for the rendezvous I’ve established with Ambar by the town’s outskirts.

But I stopped, compelled for some reason to linger a little more. Nostalgia? I wasn’t truly planning to unravel that pleasant mystery just yet.

Closing my eyes again, this time my smile resisted through that wave of memories about the month spent at the farm, I felt my staying gain a purpose. A good reason.

“Thank you,” I muttered happily. “For everything. Not just me, not just for your children, but for everything. Your memory shall never be forgotten.”

I took just a step away from the grave- and I stopped at what sounded to be a giggle. A familiar one.

I spun around, half-expecting to find… something.

The whistling of the wind, which I possibly confused for that living sound, greeted me in return.

Sighing, I returned to look back on my tracks and resumed with my walk back at the place that had been my home for so long now.

Now I had to leave it. I would visit and… stay for a few days from time to time. But I wasn’t going to live here permanently.

Not because I didn’t accept it as home, or because I didn’t feel happy to ‘impose’ myself into the place. This was where the new members of my family were.

But still, the rest of the family wasn’t there. Nor I wished to see them forcefully brought there all to see me.

Mora and Randal needed peace right now if they wanted to genuinely rekindle the opportunity of doing something great with the farm. And my presence here, with how things were right now, wouldn’t give them this.

I needed to find my way back to the others.

My crew. My friends. My family.

My love.

I hummed quietly as I finally reached the beginning of the hill, half of the path to the house now done.

_**One step at the time. There’s no need to rush my departure just yet...** _

\-------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d-

“Are you sure you got everything?”

I sighed at Mora’s voice, glancing at her mirthfully as I offered her a nod.

“I’m certain of it.”

The Cow Prime huffed, but a smile appeared on her lips at that confirmation.

“Wouldn’t want to see you leaving without having all the luggage done and prepared,” She pointed out. “While it would be hilarious to see your solemn ritual before departing and then come back because you forgot something, I don’t think that would be… good for you.”

I gave her a frown at that. “Ah.”

“And don’t give me that look. You know better than me that it can happen.”

“That doesn’t mean you can just jinx it,” I rebuked dryly. “Still, I’m glad you look awake at this early hour.”

“Had to. It would’ve been annoying to say goodbyes with half-dead me,” The young woman shot back cheekily. “Plus, I want to give you the bestest of hugs.”

I blinked. “Well, why not give it to me now?”

“You wish!” Mora grinned eagerly. “And while I’m tempted to do so now, I don’t want to be empty-handed when Randal gives you his own hug.”

“Competitive much?”

She nodded. “You know me.”

“Yes...” I agreed while nodding slowly at that reminder. “And I hope that giddiness doesn’t push you to make any silly decisions.”

“I got Randal keeping away from trouble,” The Cow Prime pointed out. “We’ll be fine!”

Staring back at her without saying a single word, I knew that, despite how responsible the Collie was during important situations, he was also easy to push around with proper manipulation.

Like Mora tended to do as a child when she felt in the right in any way compared to the opposing view of her older brother. It wasn’t outright malicious, but she was a pushy little sister when she wanted to.

But sadly for her, I wasn’t as easy to lead around like Randy. And she knew that way too well since the last few days saw a couple of failures from her part to poke at my resilience to her persuasive manners.

“I will still visit-”

“And we will be waiting here,” Mora remarked happily. “So don’t hesitate to visit whenever you can.”

I shook my head, but my disappointment was diluted at how funny her confidence sounded so closely.

It wasn’t by any means arrogance. At least, I could tell that it wasn’t.

But the way she sounded so… ready for every challenge- it left me with more relief and trust over the affairs at the farm.

They’re going to be fine, I repeated in my head. They’re more than prepared for this.

It felt odd to be worried about things here considering how little I worked here at Las Lindas compared to these two. But I cared, and that was the prime requirement to feel worried about someone.

“By the way, what are you going to do for today?”

She blinked in surprise at the sudden change of topics, but still managed to give an answer to my question.

“I was actually planning to start fixing some of the issues in the unused buildings,” Mora replied with a serious tone. “While the fact the barn is mostly repaired is nice, I think we should also get other places in working shape before I start seeking people to join the workforce.”

I offered a good nod at that interesting approach. “I suppose you’ve something planned for that last bit too.”

Huffing, the Cow Prime brought out a small letter that was meant to be sent to the local newspaper.

“‘Searching for determined workers for Las Lindas, contact number and-’” I paused for a moment, grimacing at how curt the Wanted Ad was. “Mora, you can’t just expect for people to jump in the boat just at the mention of the farm’s name.”

“Wasn’t mom respected in town?” She rebuked and I sighed.

“Diana was, but you are not,” I remarked dryly. “I’ll remind you that you spent years out of the region and nobody knows what kind of person you become. Diana also told me that the approach didn’t work with her when she first got hold of the property.”

“What do you suggest I do then? That one day, I go to town and check person by person?”

I frowned at the sarcastic underline in that rhetorical question.

“Just check at the local bar. I know at least there will be a guy that would jump at the occasion of good work and shelter for the night,” I answered calmly.

Mora frowned at the response. “Then why didn’t you ask him yourself to come here?”

“Because it would sound deceiving from my part to do that to him,” I admitted with a snort. “He is a good fellow, but terribly lazy and running short on money anytime soon considering how expensive his current home is.”

“Anyone I know?”

I blinked at that. “No. He’s from Prism, but I can’t say anything else except asking you to be honest to him about it.”

“That sounds rather ominous,” The young woman pointed out and I quickly nodded at that.

“That’s because he looks gullible,” I added. “But he isn’t. And he’s a friend, so I still don’t want to get him at the farm with some tricks.”

“Then I will just ask and… he will come?”

I nodded, drawing a perplexed look from the Cow Prime.

“How desperate is this guy?”

Sighing, I decided to leave out another detail about the ‘suspect’.

“He’s a college dropout.”

That seemed to give Mora a clearer sight over the individual I was trying to mention to her.

“Why?”

“A big fight with some teachers. There were some entitled students in his class and that left him frustrated at his own failures.”

“Ouch,” The young woman said while flinching at the summarized depiction. “I guess you trust him.”

“He can be a little pervert when he’s drunk but… he seems fine most of the time,” I guaranteed with a nod. “Just ignore any strange comments, and he will not give you any major issues.”

“Can you also give me a name or-”

“Miles,” I replied quickly. “He’s a Cat Prime with white hair. If he’s not there when you visit the bar, just ask about him to Taffy. She’s a waitress that works there and… she’s a Bunny Prime.”

At the mention of the second name, Mora’s green eyes gained a mischievous glint.

“Taffy as in… the one mom said you were completely taken with.”

“T-That’s a greatly exaggerated tale,” I admitted with a minor stutter. “Still, I care about her… a little more than just a friend.”

“And I suppose you’re planning to give her some _unique farewell._ ”

The mirthful tone wasn’t missed, and I managed to hold back a blush at that cheeky teasing.

“Maybe,” I confessed with a tiny smile, getting a brief surprised look on the young woman’s face. “But I will talk with some others before leaving.”

“You better not forget anyone there,” Mora muttered with a faux-stern tone. “Would be kind of scummy if you did.”

I spared myself a flinch at the memory of Miles pulling the same and ending up dealing with lots of angry people to apologize to. I wasn’t planning to end up in that very situation myself.

As I nodded at her words, we both turned at the sounds of some chuckles being shared between Randal and Archie. The Nanozell spirit was looking at the tiny camera with a giddy look before he turned to glance at us.

“And here are the two headbutters!”

The Collie Prime had his sight at us once he heard this, an amused smile on his face as he nodded in agreement at the nickname.

Mora and I shared a huff at that cheeky remark, the similar reaction getting us both to glance at each other with some understanding.

These two were playing with fire now.

“I suppose you’re both ready for the departure,” Randal inquired calmly, sobering up from his previous giddiness. His stare focused at me and he offered a nervous smile. “It’s been a long month and… I will really miss you, Matt.”

Smiling widely at his words, I took two steps forward and initiated the hug. “And I will miss you a lot too.”

He chuckled, completing the embrace by wrapping his arms around my neck and…

“Don’t forget about me now,” Mora chuckled giddily before she moved in to pull us both in a bigger embrace.

She didn’t hold any of her strength with that, and both Randal and I struggled against her as she started to giggle at our efforts.

“Dangit Mora,” I groaned as her hold was impossibly stronger than expected.

“M-Morita, not so tight...” Randy muttered nervously, far too accustomed to this kind of retaliations.

Meanwhile Archie was giggling while hovering around and taking photos of what was going to be the final hugs before I had to leave the farm.

In the end, I found myself waving at them as I started to make my way down that familiar path that led to town together with the Nanozell Spirit.

**Next stop, the bar.**

\-------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d--------

“Man, you can’t leave me like this!” Miles whined as he straddled onto my shirt as if his life depended on it.

Groaning at the scene, I tried my best to not look at the reaction this annoying display of acting was getting from the other patrons in the bar.

The bartender looked positively amused, and Taffy was giving her hardest to not laugh at how comical this was turning into.

Minos merely stared, an entertained smile on his face showing that he too wasn’t against showing mirthfulness at this development.

“Miles, I’ve already told you that I’m not leaving forever. I’m going to visit from time to time-”

“That doesn’t help, man!”

I sighed. “Can you please not claw at my shirt?”

“Who’s going to help me in finding work?” Miles bemoaned with more false tears, completely ignoring my words.

“I kind of got something going that will help you with that,” I replied calmly, holding back as much annoyance as possible.. “But please, get off of me.”

He tensed up at the little irritation he could feel in my voice, and he suddenly backed off.

I wanted to sigh dryly at this as I knew that it was all connected to the whole punch situation I had with Minos.

While the Bull Prime ‘forgave’ me about it, Miles actually felt that the sight itself was a glimpse of what happened when I got genuinely angry at someone.

I already told him it wasn’t the case, and the same was repeated by both Taffy and Minos, but the Cat Prime was just too convinced about it.

The more I tried to get him to understand the simple point, the more he would just entrench this very notion to the point of zealousness.

At first I thought it was his brain going dumb on us all, but then I started to think more about it and… I kind of visualized it more as a mechanism of his to actually fight back any of his own laziness when I was around.

As much as it might sound odd, the theory had its foundation with the fact that ever since I resumed my visits with Minos at the bar he would always agree to any effort to fix his current living place.

And about that, it was kind of easy to see how impractical it was to repair it considering how expensive things were after that much hard work spent on it. It was just a black hole for money.

Miles agreed to this, but it was just after I showed him the papers of his contract and the best repairing costs that he could get from a specialized company. It wasn’t a decision driven by some fear of me, but it was forced by the fear of genuinely being robbed by the absurd upkeep of the place.

In the end, he agreed that finding a job now would put him in a situation to properly settle down.

The first place he sought out was the bar itself, but the owner refused on the ground that the place couldn’t afford another waiter there and that even without Taffy he would still manage.

The Bunny Prime didn’t mind the comment, pointing out that the man was still able to go around and give the orders to his clients, and that she herself had thought about taking another job in town.

Other establishments were pretty much the same in that regard.

With how little unemployment there was in town, not many needed for new work places to be created, and the Mayor himself was quite in favor of this view as he merely focused on lessening up the bureaucracy behind taxation for his current mandate.

“Sorry- and wait! You really got me a job?”

“Maybe,” I replied curtly. “It all depends if your stance about farm-related jobs changed.”

He frowned, his lips twitching in a brief scowl at that unexpected detail.

“I mean, how would that work? Do I get a pay and-”

“A pay, a decent bed, working shower and bath, ‘free’ meals-”

“W-Wait, are you sure that’s a farm and not something different?” The Cat Prime interjected with confusion in his voice. “I mean, I don’t want to sound disrespectful, but I think that’s a lot for-”

“Considering that the wage would be lower than normal since the farm is still growing after a period of decadence, the extra is to make up for that loss.”

His mouth closed up quickly and he nodded before he started to think a little more about it.

“I know you wouldn’t ever sell me a crap job… but can I ask if I would be alone or if there is someone already there?”

“I think Mora will be there working the fields too, but I don’t think that you, a nice guy, would allow her to take too much work on her own shoulders,” I mentioned with a sigh. “Think that she’s the current owner of the farm, and while she can offer some help from time to time, you will have to go through your share of the fields on your own.”

…

“Still, it sounds so rough.”

My hands reached his shoulders and I patted both at the same time, making him tense up and stand in full attention

“Miles, I want to tell you this because I know you need to hear these words now more than ever,” I started to say with a serious tone. “What happened in College was bad. I will not blame you on your reaction as everyone has their own way to handle the frustrations. But I can assure you that if you work hard at the farm, your efforts will not be ignored. Hard work is rewarded at Las Lindas.”

He blinked, his eyes wide open and his jaws hanging low at the pep talk.

Smiling, I patted his shoulders again before letting go. “Trust me on this, you will do fine there if you really want to give it a try working there.”

…

Miles gave a silent nod. “I… I guess I will try.”

“In a few days Mora will come to seek out any available workers. And I mentioned to her about you,” I said with a calm tone. “I want you to try and give your best about the interview. It’s not something too difficult especially with how simple the job would be, but I know you tend to get cocky when you think something is ‘too easy’.”

Admitting to this, the Cat Prime offered a nod at my last comment.

“I will not disappoint.”

I grinned at that. “I know you will not. Not when you really want to succeed.”

He matched my grin with one of his and we shared a few moments of peaceful silence before I turned to talk to Taffy.

“I hope you didn’t forget our forgets.”

The Bunny Prime smiled. “Nope. And I hope you didn’t too.”

“I would never forget the promise and...” I gave her a peck on her cheek. “Don’t overwork yourself.”

She huffed. “I think you should tell that to a mirror.”

“Maybe,” I rebuked mirthfully, getting a mirthful sigh out of her.

Before I had the chance to move on to the last person I needed to speak to, the young woman reached for my chin and brought my face down so that she could plant a quick kiss on my forehead.

“Call me later?”

I nodded, enjoying her followup giggle as I turned to speak with Minos.

The Bull Prime regarded me with a knowing smile, but soon we looked at each other with a serious look.

With Taffy now busy with her work and Miles thinking about the chance of a good job while drinking some coffee and reading his newspaper, we both had the chance to engage in a private discussion.

One regarding more important topics.

“So you’re planning to bring your clan here in Gossamer?” I asked quietly. “Do you have a place where to let them live by?”

“I was planning to give them the house Ambar gave me. With the Clan’s allowance, I should be able to cover up the fees of the place,” He replied with a nod, swiftly noticing my confused look at this resolution.

“I know the place is large but… surely you can’t expect to have all of them in that house. It would be too cramped.”

He nodded again. “Which is why I was planning to move out of it.”

My confusion increased at this, knowing full well from his nervous look that he planned something I wasn’t going to like.

I didn’t even need to think too much about it to realize what he had cooked up.

“If you’re planning to join the farm, you need to know that Mora isn’t aware of the truth.”

He looked surprised at first as I hit him right where he hadn’t expected with an affirmation he hadn’t planned to hear.

“She isn’t? I thought you would’ve told her like the others.”

“I thought about it for a while, and I was really going to… before realizing that she has too much burden on her own as it was with her newest responsibility,” I pointed out nervously. “Ambar mentioned that she decided to not tell her anything beyond the fact I was friends with her, and I know that you’re not planning to tell her anything about your own secret.”

“It’s a big act of trust for me to tell anyone about my past,” The Bull Prime added with a sigh. “While you gave a good outlook of what kind of person she is, I don’t wish to take that big of a risk. I will see if she is capable of handling that truth… but if she learns about me, you’ll have to also tell your secret to her.”

“I will,” I promised dryly. “But I know it will not happen anytime soon. You’re slow to trust new people that you want to fully befriend, after all.”

“With the exception of Grace,” He admitted calmly, before giving me a curious look. “When are you going to tell her that you’re back? She has already asked if you were ever going to visit me again at my house.”

“In due time-”

I tensed up as his hand swiftly grasped at my arm.

“While I might have long accepted that you were right back then, I will not tolerate it if you end up hurting those that believed in you. Grace deserves the truth.”

…

“I will tell her when the timing is right. I don’t want to make that revelation through a phone call.”

…

“You want to visit her?” Minos inquired fascinated.

“Perhaps,” I replied with some uncertainty. “It will all depend if the current trouble doesn’t need my utmost presence.”

“I will hold you on that. If the situation is still stable-”

“Then I will visit her and Kayin. No need to worry about me breaking that kind of promise, captain.”

He snorted. “You never stopped being that kind of pest.”

I smiled in return.

“ _**Never.”** _

\------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------

This was a part of town I’ve never seen before.

It was pretty distant from the bar. Distant from Minos’ own house.

And it was easy to spot Ambar’s jet in the distance. She was already there, patiently waiting while… playing with her lance.

One would think the High Prime would never stoop so low in using such a powerful blade like a toy. To swing it around in some quick arches to burn some of the waiting time.

“I detect three energy patterns within the vehicle, boss,” Archie quickly muttered, my eyes turning to the golden airplane with a confused look.

“Crests?”

“Only one beside Ambar’s. It’s Life.”

Geecku, I thought quickly.

“And the other two have weaker connections to the elements. I think they’re… Knights?” He said as he turned at me to confirm the term. “I can detect a concentration of Wisdom and… Love.”

What?

I tensed up a little bit at that, my attention now completely taken by the vehicle as we continued to approach it.

Ambar stopped, turning slowly to regard us with a smile.

“The waiting was dreadful,” She muttered calmly. “But I suppose you’ve given your farewells to the others.”

“I will still visit them,” I remarked. “But yes, I’ve spoken to those I needed to talk to.”

The Bear Prime nodded. “Good, at least you didn’t forget that.”

“I would never forget that.”

“You wouldn’t,” She agreed eagerly. “But forgive me for being forgetful, let’s just say that I decided to spice our little leave with a few guests.”

“You brought Geecku,” I said, half-ruining the surprise from the way Ambar looked annoyed. “But who else you brought? Naerie?”

“Yes and… yes,” She huffed before glancing up at the Nanozell Spirit. “Archie dear, why do you have to spoil the fun?”

He actually looked sheepish at that query. “I was just… surprised. I’m sorry, Wise Bear.”

…

“Aw, you’re too cute to stay mad at,” The Bear Prime conceded after a giggle. “But I bet you can’t tell who’s the last guest is.”

I couldn’t. While I got lucky to get that the Wisdom Knight was Naerie, I wasn’t exactly accustomed to anyone from the Love Clan.

It wasn’t Grace as Archie would’ve told me already. So who was inside the plane?

Just as we made the first step through the tiny landing staircase, my sight was obscured by a sudden shadow and then… green and yellow.

“Buddy!”

I just had time to blink in surprise as I was tackled to the ground by the giggling Crest of Life.

Geecku grinned widely as she hovered her head over mine. She was wearing a sleeveless white shirt and a pair of black shorts.

Chuckling, I regaled the girl with a bright smile to match her happiness.

“Look at you, fiery gal. Already jumping at me, aren’t you?”

“It’s you!” She looked utterly convinced. “It’s you!”

Giggles filled by ears and I sighed. “It’s me, but you look as gorgeous as I remember you if not better.”

She stuck out a raspberry. “Flatter!”

“The term is ‘Flatterer’, sweetie,” I muttered happily. Soon, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her up as I stood up.

She carefully latched onto me, with her legs crossing over my lower waist and her arms over my neck. Her head nestled lovingly by my shoulder, with her cheek pressing onto mine.

Yep, now that’s something that was bringing back lots of good memories.

Ambar huffed. “Come on you two! You can have fun later,” She pointed up quietly. “Plus, you’re making the guests wait now.”

Nodding, I allowed a fascinated look to adorn my face as I followed the Bear Prime inside. The plane looked way bigger inside compared to other private jets, and there were numerous available seats.

The High Prime took us to the seats that we were going to take and… I paused to greet Naerie.

The younger Bear Prime offered me a polite nod. “Uncle.”

“Goddaughter,” I replied happily, but I was rendered unable to hug her properly because of my current situation.

“Oh? You’re Ambar’s daughter, Naerie?” Archie inquired with a giddy tone. “I’m Archie.”

“Nice to meet you, Archie.”

The Nanozell Spirit wasn’t deterred from the neutral tone, and in fact started a good conversation with the redhead.

While the two continued to talk, I landed my sight onto the mysterious Love Knight.

She was smiling, happily so. Her green eyes were wide open and glinting to a degree of admiration in my regard. Her dark hair reached her shoulders and… I could see some tiny horns atop her head.

I think I’ve seen her before… but I didn’t have the chance to actually meet her.

As I stretched my hand to offer a handshake, she took the opportunity to grasp it with both her palms.

She started to shake… quite energetically.

“It’s truly an honor, sir,” The girl muttered in a mix of awe and intrigue. “I’m Hope- Hope Ravenhurst!”

I smiled, giving a nod to Grace’s and Kayin’s oldest child.

“Nice to meet you, Hope. And please, drop the formality,” I muttered kindly. “Please, call me Matt.”

“B-But you’re the Grand Knight,” The young woman exclaimed, making my smile widen up at that comment.

“And you’re the daughter of Kayin and Grace Ravenhurst,” I rebuked mirthfully, almost breaking in a chuckle as her eyes widened astronomically at that development. “I knew your parents quite closely during the war.”

Despite her surprise and confusion, Hope managed to offer a slow nod at that revelation.

I turned to glance at Ambar, the Bear Prime now sitting beside her daughter.

“I suppose Ms. Ravenhurst is here for a reason,” I pointed out carefully, feeling like this was a big ol’ trap from the cuddle bear.

The Crest of Wisdom smiled giddily. “Hope here is a Knight to the Love Clan, and while she mentioned her parents that she was going for a concern for a couple of months, she asked me if I could offer her a tutor to train her in Stealth and Support actions.”

I frowned. “Ambar-”

“It’s non-negotiable,” The High Prime interjected. “And don’t sound too reluctant. It’s an opportunity for you to avoid speaking with ‘them’.”

Goddammit Ambar.

“I-If that’s a problem with my request, si- _Matt_ ,” The young Ravenhurst affirmed nervously. “I can’t press you into it and-”

“It’s not a problem with your request,” I interrupted, carefully picking a seat beside the girl. Geecku fixed herself better so that she could sit on my lap and still rest her head on my chest. “It’s more of a… problem I might cause if your mother knows I’m now back.”

She frowned at that explanation. “Mom? Why would she have a problem with your return, si- Matt? You’re the-”

“Stop repeating that,” I calmly ordered. “And before you ask again… let’s just say that I left in an abrupt way. In fact, I was kind of ‘pulled’ away from the scene once the war was over.”

Hope nodded, and I continued with my explanation. She listened, offering just a few questions from time to time, and I would offer the best answers I could give her.

At this point, I knew that she had unwittingly caught me in that circumstance. One I wasn’t going to be able to ditch as easily as I wanted.

Giggling, Ambar sealed with that reaction her victory over me. There wasn’t much to do but accept the development at this point.

_**At least Hope looked to be educated well enough with the basics. And who knows, an apprentice? I might find the experience refreshing.** _

  
  
  



	30. Day One

**Chapter 30: Day One**

**Beta-Reader: Ant0nius**

**~Mora’s POV~**

“ **Riiiing!”**

The alarm loudly echoed across the entire house, waking up the last occupant that was still sleeping.

“ _Okay! Okay! I’m awake already!_ ” A certain Cow Prime returned tiredly as she regarded her own alarm with utmost annoyance and irritation.

Once the thing was turned off, Mora yawned, stretching her arms and sighing as she prepared for a new day.

‘Ah yes… awake,’ She thought silently, her green eyes slowly opening to the world around her. Her room was now cleaner than when she first returned, with everything now properly placed in the proper compartments and sections of the wardrobe and the shelves.

Blinking quietly and allowing the peace to bring her fully out of her sleepy state, the young woman sighed.

‘To another **great** day...’

Two weeks had gone by ever since Matt left the farm. Not much had changed in her routine, except maybe for a few new additions to Las Lindas.

“ _Mora! Breakfast is ready._ ”

Randal’s voice reached her room, and she blinked again as she remembered that she had much to do for today.

Huffing, she pushed her body off the comfy bed and right towards her wardrobe. Ditching her pink nightwear that she had bought last week, the Cow Prime dug through her clothes and recovered the white shirt, some underwear, and her overalls before she started to put those on.

Once she was done, Mora walked out of her room with a happy smile on her face.

The kitchen was bustling with activity as she entered inside.

Miles was quietly humming as the Cat Prime continued reading his newspaper in peace, a steamy cup of coffee on his side of the table.

While he didn’t look like much, Matt had been right to recommend him for the job. He was average, but while he didn’t excel at the task at hand, he made up for his lacking physical skills with his own determination.

At first she expected a lazy pervert that lived only to leech off kindness, but while the cheeky remarks would suggest that, the young man was actually devoted to the hard work.

Enough to make his presence quite consequential at the fields.

Meanwhile, a certain Bull Prime finished devouring one of the last jam-filled sandwiches on his plate.

“Good morning, Mora,” The big guy greeted, and her own smile grew as he noticed his peaceful one.

It was still a mystery how Matt had decided against mentioning Minos to her. Maybe the human had expected for Mora to be intrigued by the tall man, or maybe he was even more ahead of her and knew how much she liked tough guys like the Bull.

No matter how much the Cow Prime pestered Matt on the phone about it, the human would easily divert the conversation elsewhere. Or mention sudden ‘interference’ to the phone line whenever he didn’t have an excuse to change the argument.

Despite that, the man agreed on her decision to accept Minos’ offer of working at Las Lindas. And her investment was a little more secure on the way the guy worked at the farm.

Various rocks that were created by the rubble from the broken buildings around the property were quickly disposed of by Minos, much to Miles’ own relief.

The Cat Prime had dreaded the duty of clearing up zones with that kind of problem, almost begging to be set permanently to work on the fields. A choice she supported wholeheartedly considering how good he was at it.

“Morning, boss,” The aforementioned guy cited, drawing his yellow eyes on her for a moment and giving her a nod. “Are you ready for another tough day?”

“Isn’t that just a normal day now?” Mora remarked mirthfully, forcing an agreeing snort out of Miles with that comment.

“O-Oh, Mora,” A feminine voice quipped nervously and distractedly as the individual worked with Randal to finish up the last bit of the breakfast. “Good morning- we will join you all soon.”

The Cow Prime huffed at that. “There’s no need to rush, Taffy. Don’t overwork yourself.”

Now it was the Bunny Prime turn to groan. “Don’t tell me Matt told you to say that to me.”

The giddy smile on Mora’s face confirmed Taffy’s suspicions, and thus another groan left her lips before she returned to work on the stove.

Randal paused to smile brightly at his sister. “Morning, sis.”

“Randy, I see you’re up and ready for some apple-catching.”

“Either that or helping Taffs with the kitchen.”

The Bunny Prime had a tiny pout at that comment, something that the Cow Prime connected to the fact the girl was incredibly jealous of who worked on ‘her work station’.

Randy was too kind and submissive to take offense at that sudden take over, and he merely helped around while Taffy would take charge of what needed to be prepared for the meals.

Once breakfast was over and the table was cleared out, the small group departed to the various areas they were supposed to work on.

Minos would do fine with going through the stone-removal effort, while Mora and Miles would go through to collect the mature vegetables by the fields and plant new ones in their stead.

The activity was fairly simple considering how much of the farm was left untouched. There wasn’t just enough workforce to fully exploit its entire potential.

Las Lindas was made by 433 acres of farmland that had been under the Linda family for several generations now.

Her family’s estate was the place where Mora had lived for the first part of her life. From her birth up to when she departed abruptly when her mother refused to tell her the truth about her missing father.

Diana Linda was a loving mother and a caring woman to those that had the chance to meet her. The former owner of the farm was also someone that cared the most for her family, whether it be made by biological members or not.

Her unfortunate demise left the burden of keeping up with the farm’s affair to her daughter, and thus Mora was now left to handle everything with the help of those that joined her little effort to bring the farm back to its prime glory.

And there had been progress ever since she took full control of the property. While there was still so much that needed to be fixed to working conditions, the more integral elements in the estate were repaired when Matt was still around and keeping the farm working the best he could.

One man, despite how strong and quick he could be when needed, was unable to do little else other than keeping it all running to acceptable conditions.

Now that most of the debts had been cleared and that the first results yielded since she started to seriously work at Las Lindas exceeded expectations, the Cow Prime felt ready to consider hiring more workers to further increment the gains reported in the last few weeks.

Her decision was somewhat opposed by Randal and… Patches.

Alejandra Coldthorn was a rising businesswoman and her childhood friend. While they might have not seen each other in the friendliest of ways before her return, Mora still believed in the logical explanation that her ‘little sister’ gave her about her reluctance.

The farm was doing well, that was true, but to try and take a risk in increasing the amount of people working there so suddenly could severely drain all the available funds.

The stock market might not be directly of interest to Las Lindas, but if any stocks regarding farming products went down, so would the prices of their vegetables.

That much of a surprise could be troublesome if not deadly for the farm if there was a considerable amount of workers attached to the brand.

Right now? It wouldn’t cause too much of an impact with how well things were going.

But the chances of it becoming problematic was relative to how many people worked at Las Lindas.

Huffing tiredly as she started to work on her side of the fields, Mora took a moment to ponder over the situation.

‘Green Acres- Yeah, they truly got it all wrong...’

Farm life wasn’t as easy as it was made to appear on TV, and the Cow Prime had known of this ever since she was able to walk on two feet.

Diana wasn’t someone that coddled her children into avoiding the truth of having a job at a farm, and she would happily allow them all to experience the tiring experience that is working the fields… or picking apples from the orchards nearby.

Soon, the young woman had her mind set on the work in front of herself. It was going to be another tiring shift, but hopefully things were going to proceed smoothly as usual.

_**Meanwhile, a dark-furred Cat Prime and a younger Cat with white fur ventured inside the farm to search for some food and shelter…** _

\-------------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d---------

“T-Teach, can I just take a break?” Hope half-begged, her tone tired as her expression was.

We had yet to finish the fourteen laps around the building, and she was already complaining. I guess Ambar was telling the truth in saying that the girl wasn’t too much into playing the role of Knight, and that she was more interested in playing a part in medical and support actions instead.

Her physique was good enough for a rookie, but she was supposed to be better than this considering she had been training for three years now.

“It’s only been five laps, and we have yet to go through the climbing exercise,” I pointed out before letting out a sigh. “I know you can do it, kid.”

She breathed roughly, shaking her head as she actually stopped to catch some air.

“Teach, why are you so tough?”

I frowned even more at that question.

“Forgive me if I sound rude Hope, but aren’t you the one that asked to be prepared to be the best medic among Knights?” I brought up with a curious tone, causing the girl to huff.

“B-But what does running have to do with medicine, Si-Matt?”

Before I had the chance to reply, I was interrupted by a certain Nanozell Spirit.

“As a Knight you’re expected to rush to recover the wounded and to be able to dodge any sudden attacks from an enemy,” Archie answered quietly. “While the war is over, the chances of ending up facing some rogue Narakhan, or even help people through a natural disaster makes this part of the training a must for someone of your caliber, Hopey.”

The girl groaned at the pet name, but I allowed her a couple of seconds to finish her recovery.

Then I spoke again, this time with a more serious tone.

“I’ve met plenty of doctors that regretted being unable to save people’s lives quickly,” I added calmly. “While you might not see the convenience right now as you’re still training, I can assure you that you will be thankful for this once something unexpected happens.”

“That sounds… overly-paranoid on your part, teach,” The Gazelle Prime rebuked, and I shrugged in return.

“Paranoid or not, is it wrong to plan out a solution to avoid more deaths?”

She didn’t reply to that, offering just a nod to gesture that she was ready to resume with her run.

“At least can I get something out of this? It’s been two weeks now...”

I gave her a curious look. “A reward?”

“Nothing much, teach… but I wanted to know more about the truth about the… Grand Knight.”

“Truth? Hope, I don’t want to pull words out of you. Give me a proper response already.”

She sighed. “I wanted to learn more about how you started it all. How you become what you’re now.”

“I thought the journal did a brilliant job retelling what happened,” I rebuked politely.

“It did, but… you also said that it didn’t contain _everything_ ,” The girl pointed out fiercely. “Plus it doesn’t start at the beginning-beginning. So what I want to know is-”

“How it all started? How did I get to meet our queen and start wandering the galaxy?” I started to guess out of minor irritation.

I liked having Hope as my apprentice. She was quick-minded, smart, and quite flexible to any exercise I threw at her. But she was also inquisitive. Tremendously so.

I guess that her personality was closer to Grace’s than Kayin’s. I guess the former Captain shared only some of her physical features, not much of an attitude.

“Yes, teach.”

I huffed, contemplating about it for a while.

…

Then I smiled and looked at Archie with a knowing smile. The Spirit nodded at my silent request before I returned to give attention to Hope.

“If you manage to go through the remaining laps without complaining or whining, then I will,” I accepted mirthfully, getting a ‘Yeah!’ out of the now-determined girl. “And Archie will keep an eye to make sure you’re complying with your part of the bargain.”

Her celebration froze as she regarded with her green eyes the smug looking Nanozell Spirit.

Looking uncertain for a brief instance, she ultimately nodded before offering a determined look.

“I hope you’re ready to tell me a highly-detailed story, _Matt!_ ”

My smile twitched, widening a little bit. “Less chatting, more running.”

As the young woman returned on her exercise, I allowed myself a moment to walk up to the tall tree by the manor’s entrance.

Ambar’s home was truly as gorgeous inside as it looked outside. But my interest wasn’t over the architecture of the place.

My stare was directed at the bored-looking Geecku perched atop one of the tree’s branches.

She stared down as I approached and blinked with interest, noticing that I was now paying attention to her and no longer at Hope.

“Want to go and get some ice cream, sweetie?”

I was feeling a little bit hungry, and I knew the girl loved snacks at this time of the day.

In fact, the offer perked her interest from the way she tensed up, with her eyes widening in the most adorable display of interest.

“Ice cream?”

I chuckled at that query. “Yep.”

Quickly descending from the tree, she swiftly reached me and… took my hand before starting to pull me inside the building.

“Let’s go, buddy!”

Chuckling again, I allowed the Crest of Life to lead me around the large building.

Some of the servants working there paused to greet us, with a couple of them even exchanging amused looks as we giddily wandered around the place.

The High Prime was quite careful to pick people that weren’t too stiff about etiquette to live there. I guess she knew that having any standard butlers and maids would just make things awkward for her to live in her own house.

Despite that little occurrence we managed to reach the kitchen uneventfully. The massive room contained a big fridge and numerous working tables for the few occasions that saw various chefs invited to the manor during State Visits from other nations.

But right now the place was mostly desolate if not for a few servants keeping an eye over the place and a tiny group of them was busy cleaning some bits of the humongous room.

We arrived at the fridge, knowing that Ambar had bought a large amount of ice cream ever since we discovered Geecku loves it.

I never had the chance to have the Lizard Prime test some of this cool treat, but the way she devoured her first few cups was enough to cement it as one of her favorite desserts.

I reached for four watermelon-flavored cups, offering three to the famished girl while I reserved just one. There was no need to risk the fact I had yet to go through the climbing exercise with Hope.

Just as we took a seat to start some quality time with ice cream, our attention was stolen by some voices starting to approach the kitchen.

At first it was too muffled to realize who it was. Then they came closer, and I recognized Ambar’s and…

…

Oh no.

My eyes widened, my brain telling me that the Bear Prime couldn’t have done this to me. Not like this, not so suddenly and unexpectedly.

Yet I could now sense her familiar energy pattern and I tensed up in dread.

It’s her, my mind screeched as I completely forgot about the ice cream and waited for the situation to happen.

Hiding was futile, especially with how sharp her sense were despite how many centuries of peace have ensued since the war.

“Come on, there’s no need to be a stick in the mud. It’s not my fault your son took a liking to my daughter,” Ambar said with a mirthful tone. “Think of it, at least you know Naerie is a good candidate.”

A huff interceded her words. “What I worry the most is that he is so close to you and your perverted ways.”

The Bear Prime giggled at that affirmation, and I braced for the worst as she stepped inside the kitchen, soon followed by her interlocutor.

I felt a nervous smile appear on my face as I found myself staring at the third person I really didn’t want to meet so soon.

Wearing a pretty pink kimono, the white-furred Cat Prime stopped for a moment in her conversation with Ambar and turned her beautiful orange eyes on me.

At first confusion flashed through her stoic look. Then she blinked as her head tilted to the side in visible surprise and… then her eyes widened.

“Theo?”

…

“Hello, Katie.”

She blinked again.

“‘Hello’?” She parroted in visible shock. “You’re- you’re here and you- Ambar, what is going on here?!”

The loud outburst caused the Crest of Wisdom to giggle nervously.

“He’s back. Theo is back. And his name is Matt.”

Kate Aryoko turned back at me with a stern look. “You- What- Explanation!”

I tensed even more at that escalation. She was getting angry alright and Geecku’s giggling wasn’t helping.

“Like Ambar said… I’m back.”

…

She didn’t say anything else, and before I had the chance to add some more details to avoid any unneeded fights I saw the blonde Samurai quickly rush at me and jump over the table.

My jaws dropped as I saw the Crest of Light diving towards me.

In a normal instance, that sentence would’ve caused me to panic and dodge the assault.

But then I noticed a tiny detail that made the entire attack less dangerous.

She didn’t have any of her swords deployed, instead I saw her arms spreading in preparation as she effectively pounced me on the floor.

Wrapping her arms tightly around my neck and looking at me closely with her intense orange eyes, I easily ignored the pain of the fall as I stared back at her. Tears were forming there.

“You- you’re alive. You didn’t- die?”

I sighed, a kind smile forming. “I told you I wasn’t planning on dying. Let’s just say that I was ‘cast’ away when the war was over.”

“W-What?”

I shushed her as I tightly wrapped my own arms around her waist. “Now, now, we will talk about this later. How are you doing, Katie?”

Her smile twitched, and her tears were much to my sadness still alluding to a crying session soon to come.

Yet I didn’t mind this situation as I addressed the Crest of Light.

Ignoring Geecku’s and Ambar’s giggles, I focused on talking with the surprised Cat Prime.

_**But boy, I was going to prank Ambar for stabbing my back like that. The nerve of that perverted Bear!** _

\---------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d-----------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d-----------

**AN**

**This is the end of ‘The Golden Month’… but not the end of the story. Not at all.**

**A prequel is already in production, and it will focus on the War. Yes, we’re venturing that deep in the lore.**

**Prepare for explanations about Matt and his relationship with the various Crests, some more info about his powers and… his true Ship!**


End file.
